To Become a God: Cosmology, Sacrifice, and Self-Divinization in Early China (Harvard-Yenching Institute Monograph Series)

To become a god Cosmology, Sacrifice, and SelfDivinization in Early China

Michael J. Puett

Published by (he Harv3rd University Asia Center for (he H arvard-Yenching Institute Distributed by Harvard U niversity Press

Cambridge, Massachu5ens, a~d London, England, 2.00:2.

PTimed in 111£ United 5 tl l(1 of Am~r lca The Harnrd · Yenchlng In,dune, founded in

1918

and he.adquarlered at Harvard Univcnity.

is a foundation dedlcaled to the IIdY~nceH1cm of higher education in the human ities and

lOCiaI sekru:es in Ealt and Somhtut AI~. The Insl itute supports adv.aneed research al HlrYard by {:aculty mtmb... of certa in A.~n universilies .and doclor:01 sludk. at Harvard Ind other univcnitiel by junior faculty

II

the lime universities. It also Juppom East AJian

For God doth know that in the day ye eol.{ therof, men your eyes shall be: opened, and ye shall be as gods. - The Bible, Genesis 3. King James version

Itudicl at Harvard through comributiou. 10 Ihe Harvard· Yenching Library and publicalion of lhe HG.",,,,l Jo~.","

of lu,'GIi< S/uJirJ and boob on premodern EaSt Asian history and

litcrature. Libra ry ofCongreu Cataloging.in. Publicarion Dati

Pucl!, Michael J., 1964 To becomc a god: tOIIllOlogy, lacriflCc, aud self·diviniudon in early China { Michael

J. Pnen .

Emperors and kings. are but obeyed in their several provinces, Nor can they raise the wind or rend the clouds; But in his dominion that exceeds in this Srretcherh as far as doth the mind of man. A sound magician is a mighty god: Here, Faustus, try thy brains to gain a deity.

p. C111 . •• (Harvard· Yenchlng Inll ilUle Ulonograph aeries; S7)

-Christopher Marlowe. 'fix. Tragrdy of Doctor FaU5IUJ, lines 60-66

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Who was it who first W recked the bonds oflove And transformed them into chains? Which led rebels [0 make A mock of their rights And the heavenly fire and, Disdaining monal ways, Elect presumption, Striving to become the equals of gods. -Friedrich H olderlin. "The Rhine" (Translation by Richard Siebunh, Hymn5 and FragmcntJ, pp. 73-75)

Acknowledgments

This book is a product of my long-sr:,mding inrerest in three distinct disciplines: anthropology, history, and philosophy. Indeed, three of my scholarly degrees are from these fields (S A's in History and Philosophy, and an MA and a Ph.D. in Anthropology). My strong belief has always been that work-

ing across these disciplines e,an be highly productive-pcrhlps more from che tensions that arise than from the harmonies. My models have been my teachers: Marshill Sahlins, Anthony C. Yu, Edward Shaughnessy, and Pl u! Fried rich, e.ach of whose research straddles several disciplines.

I began researching the topics covered in this book 0lS a gndu;.He scudent at the University of C hicago, but put this research aside when it became

necessary to focus on com pleting my dissertation. The dissertation was sub· sequently revised and became my first book, Th Ambivalence of Creation:

Th-bates Conwning Innovation ami Artifice in Early China (Stanford University Press, 2(01). M uch of the research and writing o f t he present work was undertaken while teaching at H arv.ard University. Although th is book is bro.ader in scope .and includes mo re .anthropo logical and comparative analysis th.an AmbivalenCt ofCwllion, the cwo works are related. During the dec.ade I have been working on this book, an enormous number o f people have played invaluable roles in sh.aping the project. Foremost among them are my teachers.at the University of Chic.ago: Marshall S.ahlins, Anthony C. Yu, Edward S haughnessy, and P.aul Friedrich. I continue to be

,

A CKNOWLEDGMENTS

ACKNOWLBDGM BNT S

deeply indebted to each of them. 2nd each remains a constant source of inspir;.Hion for mc. I :also thank my coUeagues at H arva rd University. who have provided an exciting intcUcctw.l environment over the past seven years. I exprw my gratirudc in panicwu to Peter 6 01, with whom I have had so many stimulating conversations about C hinese intclkcnnl history. SpeciaJ thanks as well to Wilt Idcma. Stephen O wen, and Tu Wei-Mingo I fed myself fomm.;nc [ 0 have such intellectu.al.J.y cnpgcd colleagues. My d eep appreciation also to Benjamin Schwam and K. C. Chang. with whom I had many c:xciting conversations about this book. I have continued my (onversations with them in the pages char follow; I deeply regret not being _ble to hear their replies. Harvard is an emptier place without them. I also give heartfelt thanks to David Keighdc:y. Even the numerous foot· notes :lInd lengthy discussions of his ideas that fill this book do nor adequately reveal my debt {O David. His ability to link meticulous scholarship, insightful historical analysis. and a pro vocative usc of anthropological theory hal long inspired my work. I sec this book as being. to a significant degree, part of lengthy and ongoing conversation with David. The reviewers of an early version of this book for the H arvard University Asia Center, Stephen Durrant and an ano nymous reader, helped immeasurably in making this a more coherent and readable work. The remaining errors arc my own. but they arc probably all places where I f.Uled to addrcss sufficiently the inadequacies the reviewers so expertly pointed o ut. Many sections of th is book were delivered as conference talks and invited lectures over the pan several years. beginning in 1996: several mee tings of the Warring States Working G roup. o rganized by E. Bruce Brooks at the University of Mauachusctts at Amherst; (WO A.ssociation of Asian S tudies meetings {1997 and 1999}; the University of C hicago; Sanford University; the University of California at Berkeley; the University of Oregon; me University of Pennsylvania; Grinnell College; Indiana University; the University of Heidelberg; Brown University; Bowdoin College; Princeton University; the University of California at Riverside; and the University of Michigan. I am extremely grateful to the many s'(holars whose comments on those occasions have been invaluable to m e d evelopment of the ideas in this book. E. Bruce Brooks has played a significant role in the field by organi2:ing several Warring States Working Group conferences as well as the Warring

S tates Working Group e-m.aillist. My views have benefited immeasurably from me lively and provocative debarcs he has stimulated. I am deeply grateful to those many students at Harvard University who had to listen to these ideas about humans and spirits in early C hina. probably Dr more than they would have liked. over me years in my semina rs and reading groups. I t hank them not only for vo icing their excellent ideas. comments. and criticisms on those many occasions but also for playing a crucial role in building such a vibrant intellectual community at Harvard. In particular I thank Sarah Allen. T imom y Baker. Anthony Barbieri-Low. Alennder Beecroft. Erica Brindley. Rod Campbell. Jennifer Carpenter. Kang Chan, Jack C hen. T a-Ko C hen. Stephen C hou. Mary Coker. Wiebke Denecke. Peter Ditmanson. Shari Epstein. Robert Foster. Romain Graziani. Alennder G reen, Natasha H eller. Brian H offert, Eric H urton. Jiang Wu. S hiamin Kwa, Vincent Leung. Kit Marlow. Andrew Meyer, David Mozina, Min Byounghee. Anne Ng. Christopher Nugent. Michael ~dich. Jeff Richey. Doug Skonicki, Jennie Song. Aaron S talnaker. David Sundahl, S ung C hia-f'U. Nancy Tewkesbury. Cara ToneUi, Julius Tsai. N icholas Tustin, Honza Vihan. Curie Vir:ig. and Zhou Qin. I also express my deep appreciation and gratitude ro everyone whose friendship has been so important to me throughout t hil period: D. D. Baron, O. Bradley Bassler. Steve Bokenkamp, E. Bruce and T aeko Brooks, Rob Campany. Eileen C how. Scott Cook. Mark Csikszenrmihalyi, S tephen Our· ra nt. Halvor Eifring. Paul Goldin. Christoph Harbsmeier. P. J. Ivanhoe. David and Vannie Keighdey. Barbara Mirtler, Krista Ovin:, Willard Peter· son. Sarah Queen. Lisa Raphah, H arold Ro{h. Haun Saussy, Tho mas Schmit%, Michael ScOrt. Laura S kosey. and Tim Weston. Finally. my deepest gratitude to my &roily. to whom l owe everything {hat marters to me in this world.

M.J. P.

Contents

Introduction Secondary Scholarship 51 Method of Analysis 11/ O udine 26 I

Anthropomorphizing the Spirits: Sacrifice and Divination in Lace Bronze Age China

}1

The Foundations of Chinese Cosmologic2.1 and Bureaucratic Thought pi The Agon of Humans and Spirits in Late Shang 401 Placing the Ancestors: T he Construction of the Shang Pantheon 441 Transforming the Spirits: Sacrifice in the Shang so/ A Moral Cosmos: The Zhou Conquest and me Mandate of Heaven HI Pacifying the Spirits: Wesq:rn Zhou S2crifici2.l Pr2crice 61/ The An of the Sacrifice: The ~Sh eng m in~ Poem of the Sbijing and Hesiod's nfogony 68/

me

Conclusion 76 2.

Gaining the Powe rs of Spirits: The Emergence of&lfDivinization Claims in the Fourth Century Be Spirits Within Humans: The Issue ofSh.anunism in Early C hina and Early Greece 81/ Humans and Gods in Early Greece 87/ Comparing China and Greece 9+/ Humans and Gods in Early China 96/ Heaven and Man in ~e LutJyu 97/

80

CONTI!NTS

CONTBNTS

The Moral CosmOl of the Mohisu 10 11 Separating Hwnans and Spirits and Dividing Heaven and Earth: The ·Chu yu. xiaC hapter of the GUOJIlI041 Bc:
Imperial CoUTU l37/ The Ascension of Huangdi: Divine Kingship in the Qin and Early Han 2-4"/ The O rder of T txtua1 Authority: Lu Jia's Xinyw 2.4S/ Conclusion "S7 7 Aligning and Orienting the Cosmos: Anthropomorphic Gods and Theomorphic Humans in the Hwaina"zi In

"Nothing Can Overcome Heaven": The Notion of Spirit in the Zhwangri Inl The Resignation of the Sage to the Order of Heaven: The Cosmology of the Mmc;IIJ 1341 The "Naturalism· of Z huang:zi and Mencius 140 4 DtKendanu of the One: Correlative Cosmology in the Late Warring States The O ne and the Many: Secondary Scholarship on Early Chinese Cosmology 146/ T otemism 2nd Sacrifice: From Graner to LeviStraws and Back Again 1521 The Great Unity of the Cosmos: The Taiyi sh
Kingship and Sacrifice: From Granet to Dumhil and Back Again Through Sahlins 2,l6/ Competing Co.tmologiu in the Q in and Early Han 2,361 Emperor. and God. in the Early

"7

The Sacrifices of the Sage: Dong Z hongshu 1891 The "Fengshan shu· Chapter of Sima Qian 300/ Determining the Position ofHe2ven and Euth: The Ritual Reforms at the End ofthe W estern H an 3071 Conclusion 313 Concl usion: Culture and H istory in Early C hina

3'7

Rrf«enct Malter

101

H ow (0 Read the AscelUion Literature aoa/ The Liberation of the Spirit: Question Four of the Shi~" 'lOs/ Liberation and Ascension in the Outer Chapters of the Zhllangzi a14/ T ranscending H eaven and Earth: The "Yuan you" of (he Chwd l17/ Conclusion lao 6 A Theocracy of Spirits: Theism, Theomorphism,and Alchemy in the Qin and Early H2n Empires

Following the Way: The "Yuandao· Ch2pter atJ l/ The AscelUions ofHuangdi and Fu Xi: The "Lanming· Chapter 268/ A Cosmos Aligned by Spirits: The "Jingshen" Chapter "70/ Conclusion l 84 8 The S2crifices That O rder the World: D ivine Kingship and Human Kingship in the Western H an

14S

'SO

"S

Bibliography

3'7

Index

34S

Introduction

I begin with [he origin of the cosmos: Long ago, in the time before chere aisced Heaven and Earth, there was only figure without fo rm. Obscure, dark. vast, and deep--no one knows its gate. Thert wert twO spiritl (shell .¥II) born together; they aligned Heaven. chey orienred Earth.

So vast-no one knows its cnd or limit! So overflowing-no one knows where it stopped! Thereupon. they divided. and became yi n and yang. separated and be· ,arne the eight pillars. Hard md soft completed =:h other, and the myriad things were thereupon fo rmed. The turbid 'Ii ~ became insects, rod the refined 'li became 1 humaru.

The passage is from the opening of the HJingshen, ~ chapter seven of me HU(li"an2:i.~ It :,md similar passages are often quoted in the secondary litera·

(Urc as examples of cosmologlc:.t! thinking. of .attempts to desc ri be the uni· verse as :.I. spontaneous, self-generating system. Something without form existed in the past ,lnd then spontaneously divided into H e.aven and E.arth, with the qi forming the va rious objects and beings of the universe. In referring to cosmogonies like this, Frederick Mote has famously .argued: -rhe genuine Chinese cosmology is that of organismic process, mean-

I. H~j",,"ri, "Jini'h~n: ,.Ia.

lbe pauage would have bull wri[[~n .om~ tim~ befor~ 139 Be, tl\( probJ,bl~ d.at~ when Liu An p llt lhe work 10 Emperor Wu ortht Hail. i.

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INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION

ing thn .all (he putS of the entire cosmos belong to one organic whole aJ}d th:u rhq all inte ract as participants in one spontaneously self-generating life J process: But, if this passage.is an anempt to describe the beginnings of a

sage urilize such loaded terms to characterize the actions of spiriu before the emergence of the cosmos~ Why do spirits have to align the cosmos before it is spontaneously formed? The answer, as I will argue in C hapter 7, has little to do with early Chinese assumptions about the cosmos. Soon after the passage JUSt quoted. the authors of the chapter discuss programs of self-cultivation t hat enable the adept to become a spirit.6 Spirits first aligned and o riented the cosmos, and humans can t hen become spiries and exercise control of the cosmos as well. The opening cosmogony of the chapter, therefore, sets t he basis for a series of crucial claims concerning the ability of humans to divinize rhemselves and thus gain control over natural phenomena. The authors are less inrerested in posiring a spontaneous universe rhan in asserting the theomorphic powers of human adepu. A similar concern with humans becoming spirits and thus gaining power over rhe natural world appears in another chapter of the Huainanzi:

spontaneous universe, then what are we to do with the third sentence: HThere were two spirits bom together; they aligned H eaven, they oriented EarthH~ Why would a universe that is self-generating and spontaneous re· quire twO spirits to align and orient it? The spirits themselves may have been born naturally. but their subsequent actions are almost like those of dem!urges-figures who actively phn and organize the strucrure of the cosmos. Indeed, the words used to describe the actions of the spirits (aligning and orienting: jing ]ing@: 'it) are lo.aded terrns, with strong resonances in the early texa. The te rms were commonly used to d escribe the ways that sages surveyed and organized prior to an act of construction. In the ·Shao gao" chapter of the Shan~hu, for example, we nnd: "The Grand ProtectOr arrived in [he morning at Luoyang and performed crackmaking about the site. O nce he obtained the cracks. he aligned and o riented Uing ying)[ [he city J:~ The passage refers to rhe preparations for the construction of me new capital of the Z hou at the beginning of their dynasty. The Grand Protector, after receiving favorable auguries, aligned the boundaries of the city from which m e Zhou could then control the north C hina plain. T he terms are found as weU in t he Shijing poem "Lingrat (M ao #a4z), which is also quoted in Mmcius IA/2.: He aligned. and commenced rhe Numinous Tower. He aligned. it and oriented it. The people labored. on it, In less than a d:ty mey completed. it. s The figure (understood at least by me time of Mencius to be King Wen) personally aligned and orienred the Numinous T ower prior to the acrual wo rk of consrruction. In these passages ftom the Shangshu and Shijing, the words refer to the organizational activities of sages, and in both cases the organizational work involved an attem pt to align and orienr human SC"Tuctures so as to harmonize [hem with divine powers. So why would the authors of the Huainanzi pas-

). MCKc.'ntrilatuQI F'UMGt'QIIJ ojOoinQ. p. l~. ~. Sb
,. Shi. h~.1.

l

If one climbs twice OLS high OLS Kunlun. {the peak) is c.1lled the Mountain of Liangfeng. If one OLScends it, one will not die. If one climbs twice u high. it is called. Xuanpu. If one OLScends it, one will become numinous and be able [ 0 control [he wind and the rain. Twice u high, it stretches up to Heaven. If one climbs it. one will become a spirit. This is called the Realm of me G reat God (Di).? The passage describes t he process of self-cultivation metaphorically as an act of climbing the peaks above Kunlun Mounuin ever higher toward the realm of the Great God. With each step in the process, one gains ever more power over natural phenomena-first achieving immortality and then gaining direct control over the wind and rain. Ultimately, one becomes a spirit and lives with rhe Great God. Both Huainanzi passages posit nor a spontaneous cosmos but one organized and controlled by spiri ts. And. in this particular sense, the passages were in t he mains tream of the claims made in most te1Cts &om early C hina: as I will arg..;.e below, visions of a purely spontaneous cosmos, in which natural phenomena are not under t he power of spirits, arose very lare in t he Warring States period and were never more than a minority opinion. What is noteworthy about these twO passages are rarhe r rhe claims made about rhe

6. H""in~nli. "Jingshen: , .,b. ,. H"",'""nli, "Dillin,," ~.).i. Su (he u tdl"m disCLwion by John M.1jor in H""~m 4nc1 Eclrlb i" EclrI, Hu Thou",f. pp. 15'- 6L.

INTRODUCTION

ability of humans ro divinize rhemselves. In contrast to the chronologically earlier Shiftng and Shilngmll. mese segments do not present humans u trying to propitiate or placate divine powers. Indeed. wimin me cosmology presented in these Huainanti passages. one need not use divination and s.acrifice to manipulate the spirits; inste:od me adept becomes a spirit directly and appropriates their powers. This book is an attempt to reconstruct the debate within which such cuims of the theomorphic potencials of humans were made and within which such claims grew to be increasingly important. I will trace this debate. which ran from the Shang through the H an. analyzing compering argumenu conceming the nature of spiriu. me proper denurcation (or b ck mereof) berween humans and spirirs. and the types of potency that humans and spiriu sho uld be allowed to exercise over the natural world. As I will argue. clainu about me nature of the cosmos. and me degree to which it is or is not controlled by willful agenu (human or spirit). afO$t within this debate and can be understood fully only within that context. In order to analyze this debate in irs full complexity. I will discuss the notions and practices of divination and sacrifice during this period and will look in depth at the ways and reuons that these practices were criticized by figures claiming the abili£)' ro become. rather than simply manipulate. spirits. And I will also detail m e rise of claims that me cosmos is a sponraneous sys_ tem-claims mat arose in opposition bom to the sacrificial and divination specialisrs of the day and to the proponents of the increasingly popular view that humans had theomorphic potentials. In short, I hope to provide a full cultural and intellectual history of the rise of both self-divinization movements and correJative cosmology in early China. This historical account of the dispute over the relationship berween humans and spirits and the natural world will give us a glimpse of a crucial debate in e:orly China. one mat had great ra mifications for developing notions of human powers. me nature of spirits. and the £)'pts of sacrificial practice that should be supported by the state. It will also throw intO question numerous long-standing assumptions about e:orly China. The revised picture should shed light on how these aspew of e:orly Chinese religious practice can be understood from a historical perspective and help point to a very different way of thinking about early China from a comparative point of view. In order to outline the implications of the issues to be discuued. I turn to a summary of some of the relevant secondary literature on these iuuCJ,

INTR ODUCTION

,

Seconcbry Scholarship One of the points I will try to demonstrate in these pages is the degree to which analyses of these issues concerning humans and spirits in e:orly China have been based. implicidy or explicitly. on compar.nive frameworks and comparative categories that for the most part originated in the fields of sociology. anthropology. and the history of religjons. T his is ttue not only for scholars in America and Europe but also for those in China. Taiwan. and Japan. O ne of my intents he re is to tease out these categories (norions such as shamanism. monism. rationality) u well as some of the comparative frameworks (evolutionary. contrastive cosmologies) in which these categories have been employed. In this section. I oudine some of the most influential of these comparative categories and frameworks. This will put us in a position to see. as other scholars are diScussed in the main part of the book. [he degree ro which their approac hes arc based on the categories presented here. My goal is not to debunk the use of comparative categories Ot to argue against comparison per se. On the contrary. I. too. will make comparisons, particularly with ancient Greece. and I will be working with a num ber of anthropological discussions of, fo r example. kingship. cosmology. and s.acrifice. My goal is, rather, to question the types of comparative categories employed thus f.tr and to point toward what I hope are other. more succes.sful approaches. Perhaps the single most influenrial figure in the rwentieth century to have studied China is Max Weber. The main corpus of Weber's writings consists of comparative analyses of the major civilizations in world history. His guiding concern was the study of rationalism: Why did partic ular forms of rational activiry develop in m e West. and why did such activity develop to only limited degrees elsewhere? T o undertake this project. Weber made a rypology of what he considered the major spheres of society: the economy. sociery. government. me bw. and religion. Since Weber saw e:och of these spheres as relatively auronomous. he believed they could be studied separately. For Weber. a civilization was the result of me interaction of m ese spheres.' Weber's comparative method consisted of comparing e:och of these • . Becawe of t he popuLority ofTht PrortIC.~r Elhit.1III 1M Spiril oJCapil.!Um, Weber hu in· correerly become ulociated with the belief t h.at religion determines IlK degree of ration~ity dllli I l ociety achievCI. In facl. Weber held no l!Kh po,ilion. Hi, anaiy,is of PrO'lemntism

•

,

INTRODUCTION

INTRODU CTION

spheres across civwrions and t he different inte ractions of these spheres in each society in order to determine the levels of rationality achieved in ach cjvili%ation and to understand what prevented the full fluorescence of 1'2rionality in non-Western civilw..rions.

simply a racionalization of magic intO a form.t1 system-for that same reason. it never transcended a magicaJ approach to thc world. Confucianism was a40"a rationaJ ethic which rcduccd tcnsion with the world to an absolute minimum" (p. 2.2.7), Indecd, there was no tension at all betwecn thc human and the divine spheres: "Completely absent in Confucian ethics was any tClUion between nacure and dcity, between erhicaJ demand and human shortcoming. consciousness of sin and nced for saJvation, conduct on earth and compensation in the beyond, religious duty and sociopolitic.t1 re.t1ity~ (pp. 235-36). Confuci2nism saw cosmos and society as fuJly linked, ~d the ethicaJ imperativc was simply to adjust oneself to these cosmic and socia! spheres:

Perhaps Weber's most influential disc:U1Sion of these issues with respect to China was his contrasting of Confucianism and Protesu.ntism. Weber measured rhtu two religions (in his terminology) according to a universal yardstick of rarion:.tiiZOlrion: To judge the levd of rationaliution a rdigion reprellcna we nuy tae cwo primary yardsticks which arc in nu.ny ways incer-rdared. One is the degree to which the religion hu divested icsdf of magic; the other is the degree to which it hal 'Y'cernari(ally unified che rd.uion berw~ God and the world :lnd therewith its own ethical 9 rdatiolUhip to the wodd..

In Weber's view, Protestantism had achieved an extreme fonn of rationalization in terms of both of these measures. In terms of the first ya rdstick. Protestant modes of thought "have liquidated magic most completely, ~ leading to a "complete disenchantment of the wo rld" (p. :126). And, in terms of the second, Protestantism precipitated a "tremendous and grandiose tension toward the world" (p. 117). Confuci:lnism, in contrast, registers far lower on both of rhese yardscicks. It is characterized by a "toleradon of magical and animist conceptions" (p. 196). More specifically, "one may say that every son: of radonalization of the archaic empiric.t1 knowledge and craft in China has moved toward a magic image of the world" (p. 196). Instead of rejecting magic .t1togerhet, Confucianism converted a magical worldview into a monistic cosmos: "Cos· mogonic specularion with thc sacred number five operated in terms of fivc planets, five elements, five organs, etc., macrocosm and microcosm.... This Chinesc 'univcrsist' philosophy and cosmogony tr:lnsformed the world into a magic garden" (pp. 199-2.(0). Chinese cosmologic.t1 thinking. in short, was

rdkn cci his claim ltw it was an imponam inBuenc£ on lhe emergence of apiulilm in lhe W~[. SUI he did noc hold lhat rdigion in gencnl it: [he only &ctor WI dct£rmin~ n tional· iry. For Weber, , run analysis of any civilizarion involvu the trudy of the interaction. of all these Ip/>ml, and a run o;ompamw" study involvu (om~riloru: of each of these Iphera with lhose found in other civilizadonl. Religion, tmn. Wal only one of many Ipherl:l. Thul, al· though I focUi here primaray on Weber'l vieWI on Chineu religioru, I do 10 only because of the emphalil of this book. , . Web£r, Th Rrli,ri~" ~fai"", p. nil (hert~lIfttr citd In the Iut).

Confucianism meant adjwnnenr ro the world, to ia or&rs and conventiON.. , . The cOimic orders of the world were coruidercd fixed and inviolate and the orders of society were but a special case of this. The great spiria of the cosmic orden obviously desired only the happiness of the world and especially the happiness of man, The lime applied to the orders of society. The "happy" tranquility of the empire and the equilibrium of the soul should and could be auained only if man fiued him· sdfinco the internally harmonious cosmos. (pp. IS:I.- n) The differencc between Protestantism and Confucianism could not be more cle:r.r:

From the rdarion between me supn.mundane God and me crearurally wicked. ethk.ally irrational world there resulted ... rhe ab50lute unholiness of tr.lldirion and truly endle51 [uk of ethically and rationally subduing and mastering the given world, i,t., rational, objective "progrcss: Here, Ihe tuk of the r:u:ional transformation of the world stood opposed to the Confucian adjustmcnt to the world. (po ""0)

As a consequence, "thc varied conditions which externally favored the origin of capitalism in China did not suffice to cre:r.te it" (p. 148), One sees in Weber's argumcnt cwo concerns that will appear repeatedly throughout twe ntieth·century discussions of Chinese thought: a concern with comparing China and the West with referencc to an cvolutionary development of rationality and a conccrn with comparing China and the WUt by contrasting their purportedly distinctive cosmologies. At timu, as in Weber himself, these {wo wcrc scen as linked. More oftcn, howevc r, these modeh came to be prescntcd in opposition to each other. Indeed, these havc become two of the basic poles around which scholarship on early Chinese thought and religion has developed. And, intriguingly, .t1though almost all of

8

I NTI\ODUCT I ON

INTRODU CTION

these sinological studies were writte n as attempts to defend the C hinese tradition agairur Weberian critiques, they tend to do so by maintaining one of

To make th is argument, Granet worked primarily from those Hll1 texu devoted to building complex correlative systems based o n yin-yang. five phases. and microcosmic/ macrocosmic relations, H owever. he read t hese cosmological notions not as a particular historical development during me Han but as indications of C hinese th inking in general. Indeed. mis viewpoint is evident in the organization of the book. The first three quarters are devoted to working OUt mese cosmologicaJ systems in detail. Then. in the fi· nal quarte r of the book. Grmet looks at individual th inkers, beginning with Confucius. Each thinker is presented as building on .a particular aspen of this HChinese" cosmology. In om er words, irute.ad of presenting cosmology .as .a Late developmen t buiJding on or re.acting .ag.ainst e.a rlier figures like Confucius. G rmet re.ads correlative minking .as the guiding principle of all C hi· nese thought. Like Granet, Fung Yu-Lan wu interested in argu ing for the value of C h ineSt thought. But his method of doing so was quite d ifferent. Inste.ad o f defining .a distinct logical system thar underlay its seeming strangeness. Fung Yu-lan's main move w.as to pl.ace C h inese: thought within t he evolutionary framework th.ar dominated contemporary studies of W estern philosophy and to read the history of thought in early Chin.a in the same terms as was then commonly done for Greece.1l H e presented e.arly Chinese philosophy in t erms of a shift from religion to philosophy, from t heistic views to rationality • .and .ar8¥ed that hum.anism, r.ationalism, and natur.ali.sm were indige-' nous to C hinese philosophy and emerged ar the s.ame rime in C hina as t hey purportedly had in ancient G reece. And, although the resulting philosophicaJ tradition in C hina did not develop in logic and epistemology to the degree found in Greece. it excelled in [he study of self·cultivation.1) In order to d emonstrate t his common evolution. Fung Yu·l.an began by reconstructing the "primitive" period t ha r Chin.a shared with.all other civili· ucioru. For Fung. me defining feature of primitive t hought was .a theistic cosmology: HIn me time of primitive man t he belief was general. not only in C hin.a but in other parts of the wo rld, that n atural phenomen.a and human affiairs are all under a divine and supernatural conrrol- (p. ~,,). ln having such a cosmology in the Bronze Age. Fung argued strongly. the C hinese were no diffe rent from the G reeks: !he Chinese of th.at time were superstitious and

these cwo poles of the W cberian &amework ~d simply revening the vaJw.rion given to China.

These polu can be seen in two highly influenWl studies published in the 19305: Fung Yu-Ian's .A History of o,intx PhiloJOphy. and Mated Gnnet's La ~nsh ,hinoUt. Fung's work wu to become one o f the most significant studies of the evolution of Chinese philosophy, and Gf2Jlet'S the most important

work on atly Chinese cosmological thinking. Both were written

[0

defend

me Chinese cndition by showing it to be. as strong as the Wesu;m rudirion. But whereas Fung 2ITCmpted to do so by showing m,l.[ Chinese philosophy dcvdoped through the same evolutionary proces:i as had the Western tr2dirion, Graner defended Chinese (hought by arguing that it was based on a cosmology radically different from. but nonetheless as important as. the cosmology rhat dominated the West. I will discuss each of these works in rurn, beginning with G ranet. Granet's main concern in lA PlllJh ,hil1oiJ( was to delineate the Hgoveming ideasH'o of early C h inese thought'!' and one of his central arguments was that C hinese thought is not Hprelogicar or "mystical." On the contrary, once one understands the basic principles that underlie Chinese t hought, o ne can see t hat it forms a meaningful. coherenr system (pp. 28-29). Intriguingly, Graner's presentation of HChinese thoughtHis in its genera.! outlines qu ite similar to Weber's view of Confucianism. with me crucw difference that what Weber saw as restricting m e fUll development of rationaJ· icy is the very thing Granet celebrated as pan: of the gen ius o f Chinese think· ing. For example. Granet argued. one finds no "world of transcendent H realities ouuide t he human world (p. a79). Indeed. this claim (made in ex· rremely po5irive terms) that the Chinese Lacked a notion of trmscendent principles-one of the characte ristics that Weber saw as limiting Chinapervades G ranet's analysis. According to Grane t. the C hinese had no sense of a transcendent Law or God and no notion of abstraction (pp. 476, 479). I ndeed. the C hinese assumed a fully mon istic cosmos: HMan and nature did nor form twO separate reaJms, but one un ique society" (p. 2S).

10. GflIntr. Ul1"PIJI, r~,'nojl', p. ~6 (hertinalitr ciled in Ihe lexr). II. I will dul litre only britfly wllh Grane", o~raU approach. For a more dera~ed diuu,. ,ion of Gn nt, '1 work, ~c CluPfu,,, and 6,

Set, t.g .• Cornfo,d. F.om Rtligi
II .

9

INTRODUCTION

lNTROOUCT10N

ignorant; they had religious ideas bur no philosophy; so that the religion and spirits which they believed in were exactly like those of the Greeks~ (p. 14). Fung reiterated this same point several times. repeatedly emphasizing the degree to which these ~supersritions~ are common among all early peoplesincluding. most important, the early Greeks. For e:ample, in discussing the ~political and social regulations instituted by Shang Oi {the high godJ,~14 Fung argued, ~The ancient Greeks similarly supposed thac the inscitutiolU of their cicy-states had been created by divine beings. a belief-probably general among early peoples~ (p. 34). This superstitious worldview was replaced by a humanistic one in che Chunqiu period (771-481 8e): "With the coming of the Chunqiu period in China. however, or perhaps even before, there were men who tried to give a human interpretation to the laws and statutes, which they declared were established wholly by human beings for man's own beneSt~ (p. 34). For Fung. this was pan of a crucial shift toward the rise of humanism. fl:lturalism, and ~rationalism~ (p. )3). Thus, in Fung's view, the emergence of correlative thinking was a step away trom theistic lIiews and a step toward a naturalistic conception:

Perhaps the most influential study within me evolutionary framework was undertaken by Karl Jaspers, in Th Origin lind GOilI of H iJlory. Jaspers's argument was mat between roughly 800 and ~oo BC, Greece, India, and China all experienced a philosophical revolution that he termed the ~ Arial u Period: For Jaspers, this period was defined by the emergence of transcendence-the point at which m
The attempt to explain the phenomena of the universe Ihrough the yin-yang Ihcoty, though ,rill primitive. is a step forward compared with explanatiollll hued on a Tian (Heavenj, a Oi, and a multitude of spirits. The neaven" described in this lut quotation (from the GllltJUj is a naturalisdc one bearing Jtrong resemblance to that of Lao%i, and seems to be: a forerunner of Oaoisr philosophy. (p. )5) Unlike Granet, who presented yin-yang cosmology as based on a distinctively Chinese mode of logic, Fung placed it on an evolutionary scale: although still primitille, it was a step toward a fully rationalistic way of thinking. The differences between these studies by Granet and Fung. published at almost the same time, exemplify twO of the poles of analysis that would dominate twentieth-century studies of Chinese thought. For the Sm few decades after the publication of these twO works. the ellolurionary model was more influential. although the past twO decades have seen a decided shift roward the cultural-es.sencial.ist model r will continue to follow mese arguments in roughly chronological order.

I• • Here and in all {he 'l.1IO(atiolll {hroughltu{ {hb book. I ha~ IUWdlUttd ,,'",Tin rOnlanludOlu.

"

H

I muse conf«s that my own interest in ancient Chinese thought hu :aUo been much stimulated by [he type of"world-hi.uorica}" obscrvarions which we find in thc chapter on the "uial age" in Karl juper' book Thr Origin Qnd End Itf HiuOf]. In this small volume juper! highlights the fact that in many of the high civili:tatiollll of the world- the civilizations of the ancient Near Eur. Gruce, India, and China-we witneu over rhe period of our ~firsl millennium B.C: the emergence of Certain "crea· rive minorities" who rdate themsdva in rc:EIa;tive, critical, and what one might even call ~transcendental" wa)'$ to the civilizations from which they emerge.16

If.Jupen, TIlt Orif" 4>1<1 GOoI! ofHiJtor], p. I (hereinafter dred in the text). us. Schwam:. n.. World ofThowjlt in },"',"', Qi.... pp. ~-J.

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INTRODUCTION

INTkODUCTION

'J

this notion of transcendence in

spirits of natUre and the ancesrral spirits are not banished. Indeed. Chinese mought 19 has never seriously attempted to carry out the "disenchantment" of the world.

If there is nonethdess some common underlying impulse in aU these 'axial" movements, it might be called the strain towards transcendence. ... What I refer [0 here is something dose [0 the etymological meaning of the word-a kind of standing

Schwanz fimher contrasted C hina with other ancient civilizations in

In an earlier study. Schwar(2

disc~d

greater detail:

back and looking beyond-a kind of critical, reflective questioning of the aCtual and a new vision of what lies beyond,17

Although Schwartz himsdf downplayed the evolutionary as~cts ofJaspers's argument, he supported the notion mat transcendence should be seen as a valid tcrm

[0

compare th e changes that occurred in chese civiliz;arions in the

middle of t he first millennium Be.

The next issue for Schwarrz was to define the particular types of transcendence that occurred in e2ch mOljor civilization. Unlike J aspers. then, Schwanz was interested in cultural analysis-in discovering [he unique forms of transcendence that arose in each civilizaeion. For China, he argued. the dominant tendency was Oro associate the transcendent with t he norion of an immanent cosmic and social order.~ Transcendence, then, occurred in China even within its immanenrise cosmology. Thus, Schwartz character11 ized transcendence in China as being of a "rhis-world1( SOrt. In making this argument, Schwartz explicitly appealed ro Weber. Indeed, Schw,l.[[z's consistent move was to largely accept Weber's description of Chinese cosmology' but to argue mat this cosmology should be considered "rational" and "rranscendenw." This for Schwartz explains the ~rational" cosmology found in texts like the Shangshu and Shijing. bur it is a rationalism based on different principles from those seen in Greece, and thus it did nor result in a W ebedan ~disenchantment of the world": To the extent that the word "rationalism" refers to the primacy of the idea of order, we can already speak here of the emergence of a kind of Chinese rationalism. It is. however, a rationalism that is radically different from many varieties of rationalism in ancient Greece. What we have is me image of an all-embracing and indusive 0[der which neither negates nor reduces to some one ultimate principle th:tt which is presumed to exist. Like the rationalism of bure.aucrtcy, it classifies and subsumes the exi.itent reality. It is a synrheric rather than an analytic conception of order. The

terms of one of rhe basic points emphasized by Weber: the lack in China of a StT'Ong tension between the hunun and divine realms. In orner ancient civilizations, most notably Mesopotamia, Egypt, Vedic India, and Greece, the human and divine realms are. according to Schwam, viewed as contestatory: "On both th e human and the divine level. anemion is c2lled to those aspeccs o f life in which gods and humans confront each other as somewhat unpredictable individuals and groups rather than in terms of fixed 'role behavior.·"XI In C hina, according to Schwartz, one finds 2 familial order of 2ncestor worship that led to a philosophical emphasis on a linkage between the divine and the human realms: Another possible implication of ancesror worship for the religious and even "philmophk" devdopment of China involves the rdation between thediYine-numinous realm and the human world. The ancestral spirits dwell in the world of the divine or numinotu... . Thus the line dividing the "diYine" from the human is nor sharply drawn, and 21 it seems that humans may pouess or takeon qualities which are truly numinous. Overill, then, Schwanz accepred much of Weber's framework of comparing civilizations with reference to the notiOn of rarion.aliz.ation. and he even accepted Weber's basic reading of C hinese culture as being domin2ted by an immanentist cosmology, a rhis-worldly orientation. and a lack of a tension between the human and divine realms. The only difference is th2t Schwanz w2nred to follow Jaspers in arguing that China did shift {O rranscendenw thinking in the e2rly period. Schwanz thus maintained a delicate balance between the two paradigms discussed in this chapter. Although dearly working within a Weberian framework. he emphasized thllt a shift toward rranscendence had occurred in China. H owever, whereas Schwam emphasized some degree of similarity between the early Chinese tradition and other early philosophical naditions. the most dominant paudigm over the past two decades has gone in t he opposite direction. Several scholars have built on Graner's work to argue thar C hina h2d a radically different cosmology from thar setn in me West.

lSI. Ibid" p. S9. 17. Schwart~ -rhe Age ofT~llKenden~,' p. l. 18. Schwam:. -rraliKencience in Ancien! Chin.: pp. 61, SSI- 60.

10. Schwan~

al. Ibid" p. as.

The WDrId .fThDMghr in A",i.nr a,i"~, p. as.

·s

INTIlOD UCTION

I NTRODUCTION

Indeed, it is not going too far to suggest that. with a few exceptions noted

ing this worldview and then discusses how the various schools of thought

below. th e evolutionary framework has largely been rejected in recent scholOlrlihip in favor of the cultunl-essenrialist model that so defined Granee's

were guided by such a sh.ared cosmology. Mote further builds on Needham to make an argument for the .absolute uniqueness of C hinese cosmology:

'4

work. Although many of the supporters of this cuJrural·essentiilist model explicitly c!:aim to be studying the· A.riaI. Age.- u they in faa strongly oppose

the evolutionary sides of Jaspers's argument. One of the more influential works based on this approach was roughly contemporary with Jaspers's book: the second volume of Joseph Needham's Science ,:Ina Civilisation in China. Working closely from Graner, whom he qUOted frequently,ll Needham sought to develop m understanding of the

fundamental cosmology of the Chinese: The key.word in Chinese thought is Order and above all Pattern (and, if I may whupcr it for the first time, O rganism). The symbolic corrdatiolU or correspondences all formed. part of one colo"a1 pattern. Things behaved. in parricular ways not necessarily because of prior actions or impuhiolU of other things, but becalUe their position in the ever-moving cyclical univene was such that they were endowed. with intriruic nuuru which made that behaviour inevitable for chern.. .. They were thus parrl in existential dependence upon the whole world.organum. And they reaaed. upon one another not so much by mechanic21 impulsion or causation as by a kind of mystcrioIU resonanCe.;z4 Within this organismic conception of the world, all things spontaneously harmonize with e:.lch other, cre:tfing an ~ordered harmony of wills without an ord:.liner.~l' In contrut to a harmony of willi, Needham c!:.limed, Europun thoughr is characterized by a ~schi2;oph renia or split-personality. Europeans could only think in terms either of Democrice2n mechanic:.ll m:tferial26 ism or of Platonic the ological spiritualism: Just like Weber, Needham argued that C h ina did not possess the radic:.ll dualism that was so import.ant for the Wesco But Needh.am reversed the formula.and dearly symp:.lthized wich the Chinese side of me contrast. Frederick Mote hu similarly based his argument on what he c.alls the general ~world view~27 of ea rly China. Like Granet, Mote begins by describ-

Needlwn. analmng thu ChinCK mood. calli it -an ordered. harmony of wills with· OUt an orWiner: As he describes the organismic Chinese ccnmos, it emergCII to our full view as one in striking contrast to all ()(her world conceptions known co human history. It differs from ocher organismic conceptions, such as clas.sic Greek cos· mologies in which a logos or demiurge or otherwise conceived. master will external to creation, was regarded. as necessary for existence. ZI

If such

2

cosmology were indeed 2n uswnpcion in c.arly China, then it

would follow th.ar both hum.ans and spiriu would be concepru.a.lized as part of .1.10lrger monistic sYStem. As Mote .argues: -rh is is Oln essentially nOlturilistic conception, in that it describes 'spirit' u h.aving the WIle qu.alities 2nd u being subject to the WIle processes as all other upccts of n.ature.~19 In contnut to Western conceptions. in othe r words, hum.ans 2nd gods were seen u simil.ar in n:.lcure. K. C. Chang expanded on these ideOlS Olnd .argued that this difference in the cosmologies of the Wesc and ChinOl derived ITom.a different orienurion toward shmunism: Men and gods, animate and inlnimOlte things, the living and dud members of the dans- all of chelle bein&1 exisced in the ancient Chinese world within the ume uni· verse. but th:.lt universe was byered. and subdivided.. The most important divisions were the Huven and the Ean:h. and the ancient Chinese could be sccn as puticul.arIy preoccupied. with the Heaven and E.1.n-h intercommunication. The Ihamansreligious personnd equipped with che power to Ry urou the different layers of the universe with the hdp of the animals and 01 whole range of rituals and paraphernalia-were chiefly respolUible for the H eaven·E.1.rth communicarion.:IO As intermediaries who mOlintain Ol proper linkage between the hunun 2nd the divine realms. Chang .argued. , h.am2ns occupied positions of great imlI

portance. For Ch:a.ng. China and the West diverged because the Ncar EOISe experienced wh.ar Chang calls Ol ~breakout~ from this e.arlier, sham.anistic put,

n . 5«, e.g .. HliI and Ames, A.IlIitipali"Id.i..... p. Jiii; and Gralun\, DUl',mn of 1M T..... p. i. l 3- Sec. ~mong ocher places. Nadium. SOmet ...d Cil>iliMIficll ill o,;"",~: 216-1,. 2.10. ~. Ibid.. p. 28 •. 1S. Ibid .. p. J8?

19. Ibid"

Tht World ofTho~tIn ill A",itlll 0,111 • • p. JOI. I? Mote.lllull«fll
)0. K. C Ou,ng. Tht Arrh.otoloDof A..nt"f 0" .... , p. 41$. The argument It.ckwloped in full in Ou,ng'J An. Myth. ~M Ri,t1I4I.

16. Schwam.

~.

'I.

Ibid .• p. 'so

p. 17·

INTRODUCTION

I NTRODUCTION

whcrcu China (along with Mc~crican civilizations) mainr:aincd iu sha-

The consequence of Graham's argument is char Chinese thought is pre· sented as fully disrincr from Western thought but based on the s.ame univer· sal types of thinking, Accordingly. although Graham conrinued to distin· guish ·China~ and the "West; he could argue that the West could learn from and accept fully the traditions of C hina. The overall argument is thus a variant o f the cultural·essentialist paradigm. Graham was com mined to a Chinese philosophical tradition based on correlative thinking. but he bued it on a universa1 claim concerning correlative thinking in order to emphasize.

" manistic culture. Thus, the War developed, among other things. -a cosmology that emphasized the scpar:ate uistcnce of g0ci5," while Chinese culture was built on an assumption of an -interlinked world continuum.- Once again, C hinese thought is distinguished by
committed to distinguishing C hinese and Western ways of thinking. In :1 move reminiscent of Graner, Grmam built this connast on :I. distinction be· tween .analytic thinking (dominant in Western thought) lnd corrcl.uive thinking (more dominant in China). However. Graham's consrrucrion of this contrast differed in some ways from G rands. To begin with. Graham argued thar borh correlative and analytic thinking arc univcrs:r.1 modes of thought. Correlative thinking is the precognitive mode common in most daily life and is t he basis for analytical t hinking. a second-order mode,uGraham therefore opposed Graner's artempt to read lare Warring States and H an correlarive models as representative of a uniquely Chinese way of thinking. Inste:ad. G raham argued. the actempt by figures in the third and second cenruries IIC to build complex. cosmological systems should be read as simply a particular dellelopment of a unillersal mode of reasoning: ·What G ranet saw as the difference between Chinese and Western thought may nowadays be seen as a rranscultural difference between proto-science and modem science. Correlative cosmos-building is most conveniencly approached as merely an exotic example of the correlative t hinking used by everyone. which underlicJ the operatiol1$ of language irself: U Instead. therefore. of building a contrastive framework between China and the Wesr on the purported disdncdveness of correlative thinking. Graham pointed instead to the relative weight that each philosophical tradi· tio n placed on correlative and analytic thinking, C hina embraced correla· tivio/i the West ultimately divorced analytic thinking from correlatille thinking and came ro value analytical thinking more highly. M

11. Gr:aru.m. DUpUI.... ~ rht T.." p. In. n- Ibid.. p. )10. Stt allo Graham, Yin.YQngQnd Ihf N~I~ .. ajC.".LII,·w 1lIlnking. pp, 1- 9. , •. Graham, DiJpWI.... of rht TQO, p. )a).

'7

the general applicabilio/ of the Chinese model Graham's arguments have been developed in rhe collaborative work of David Hall and Roger Ames. which represents the most extensive attempt in recent decades to contrast the cultures of e:arly C hina and the W~r. Indeed. they describe their work as an anempt to ~illumine the cOntr2Sring assumptions shaping classka.! C hinese and Wesretn cu1rures.~JS And. like Graner, the symparhies of Hall and Ames lie fully with C hina. Indeed. Hall and Ames strongly defend Graner's argument that correla· tive thinking is a defining feature of C hinese thought: view, however, is that Marcel Grana was essentially correct in identifying what we ate here calling corrdative thinking with a fundamental commitment of the Chinese sauibility. This implies that even among those: rhinkers such as Confucius and rhe philO$ophical Daoisrs who were not so concerned with ph)"ical speculations, the mode of corrdative thinking dominates. Our argument here is thar Han exercises in corrdative thinking are not anomalous, but are rather signal instances of corrdarive thinking in a tradition replete with such instances. (p.1S1)

OUt

Like Graner, and unlike Graham. Hall and Ames wish to read the Han cor· relative texts as represenc.arive of all early Chinese thought. Thus, Hall and Ames explicirly critique Jaspers's argument: ~If comp.lr1l.tive philosophy has anything to say about Chinese culrure during the so-called Axial Age. ir is cerrainly this: notions of 'absoluteness: 'transcende nce: and 'subjeCtivity' we re of doubrful significance~ (p. xiii). They also fault Schwartz for follow· ing Jaspers in using terms such as ·(fanscendence~ and in assuming a com· Illonalio/ among early civilizations (pp, 148, 186-87). 6ut. unlike Weber. Hall and Ames do not criticize China for irs lack of transcendence bur. like Graner. celebrate it,

INTR ODUCTION

I NT 110 DUCT I ON

In formulating the contrasting auumptions of China and the West, Hill and Ames invoke a fundamental distinction be£wcen what mer call ~firn~ and -second problematic th inking.~ First prohlemltic thinking. which Hall 2nd Ames see as dominOlting Chinese thought. is based. on -analogical o r

did undergo a transcendental breakthrough in the early period.)6 He qUOtes Schwatt%'s dellnition of transcendence for all Axial Period civilizatioru with approval (p. a73 ), but, unlike Schwartz. Raetz maintains me evolutionary aspects of Jaspers's argument. Indeed, he explicidy uses Jaspers's framework to reject the culturalist approach: "This should provide us with a universalistic conception of understanding. which avoids the ethnocentric implications or relativistic consequences of recourse to native language and culture specific forms of thought" (p, a3), In opposition to culturalism, Raetz seeks to provide "a yardstick for measuring and evaluating in its speCifIC variations the cultural evolution of mankind" (p. 30). Ckarly. Raetz's image of measuring cultures according to a yardstick of universal development is directly reminiscent (even to the point of wing the same metaphor) of the evolutionary sides of Weber's analysis. And, indeed. despite his strong rhetoric, Raetz is strongly indebted to the Webc:rian p2radigm, although Raetz places China higher on t he yardstick than did Weber. Raetz's recurrent move is thus to try to show that C hina did in nct attain the very forms of rranscendence and rationality Weber found in [he West. For the purposes of this chapter, the moSt signiScant of Raetz's discwsions is his explanation of how nature came to be seen as an object of human conquest. Since Weber connected the rise of a "disenchanted· notion of na· ture in the West to belief in a transcendent god, Roet'Z needs to C:1Cplain how this notion could have arisen in a culture without such a belief. -How. unless by means of the concept of an otherworld1y god, can nature be 'disenchanted' (Weber) in such a way char it becomes the pronne object of systematical transformation and conquest by man?" (p, al). For Raetz, the shift occurred with the "catastrophe" of the fall of the WeStern Zhou, which relulted in the "the loss of dignity of H eaven: This "nilure of the divine power led man to direct his anention to himself. Religion lost ground to new speculations· (p, 39). Raetz thus offers a variation on the "religion to philosophy- argumenr: a theistic worldview dominated the early period, bur, with the fall of t he Western Zhou. theism was destroyed. This led to a deemphasis on divine powers and a re-emphasis on humans. Raett thus feels he. hu proved that. contrary to We.ber's view, C hina did indeed see the rise of ethical rationalization in the early period (p, a14),

"

H

correlacive thinking (p. xvii). "This mode of thinking .accepts the priority of change or proceu over rest and permanence, presumes no ultimate agency responsible for the general order of things, and seeks to account for S(leU of .affairs by appeal (0 correlative procedures rather than by determining agencia or principles· (po n-ii). In ,onrra.se [0 rhis. Ha.ll and Ames claim. is sec-

ond problematic thinking. or ·cauW thinking- (p. xvu)-the mode th;1.[ has dominated the West. Among the characteristics of cauul thinking is H[he

belief th.u the order of the cosmos is a consequence of some agency of construal ... (and) the tacit or explicit claim that me States of affiUrs comprising 'the world' ate grounded in, and ultinutely determined by, these: agencies of consuual" (p. xvii). T heistic systems. therefore, in which divine agencies are seen as causative forces in shaping the wo rld, are based on a Western, r:IIther than a Chinese, way of th inking. as would be, of course, any kind of transcendental or foundational thought. Like Graham, HaU and Ames see each of these ways o f thinking as existing to some degree in both Chinese: and Western cultures, and they ,lite thus able to argue that Chinese thought is something that can be fully assimilated. infO comemporary Western thinking, But, rheir symp2thies are clearly with the correlative mode, ;md they not surprisingly oppose ;my anempt to present these types on an evolutionary line, with correlative thinking as a more primitive o r lesser stage of consciousness: ·Such a claim challenges the viability of the Enlightenment reading of cultural development, which argues that the movement from mythos to logos or 'from religion ro philosophy,' or from analogical to causal chinking. ought to serve as the norm for the civili%ing of human experience" (p, xviii), Hall and Ames would mus reject Fung Yu-lan's "religion to philosophy" argument. Indeed, they wo uld question Fung's na rrative of an evolution in China from theism to hum;mism ;md rationalism. For Hall ;md Ames, all of these are distinctively Western modes of thinking-not found in the correlative mought of China. Although the cultural-essentialist model has dominated the study of early Chinese thought in recent decades, the evolutionist paradigm has recently been resurrected with great force by H einer Raerz. Raerz explicitly picks up on Jaspers's notion of;m Axial Period, arguing ag~nl( Weber that C hina

"

'0

INTRODUCTION

But, since Roetz sees chis rationalization as necessarily involving the dis. enchantment of n.acure and the making of nature into a profane object of conquest by man, how docs he deal with the emergence of correlative cosmology-one of the very things that Weber saw as limlting rationalization in China? As Roett notes, in a reference (0 Weber. ~cosmological. holistic reasoning often counu as an indic;uion that a brmrhrough toward enlight-

ened thought has not raken place" (pp. 116-:1.7). Rocn:', defense of the Chi· nese mdirion thw consists of denying the importance of cosmology. and he therefore opposes Grmet's attempts to read correlative thinking as dominant in early C hina (p. U1). He argua, for ex:mtple. that Xunzi's cosmo-

logical terminology is simply "rhetoric· (p. 230). But Wh2t about Han texrs! Even Roctz cannot deny that cosmology becomes impom.nt in the Han. Perhaps not surprisingly. he has noming but derision for figures like Dong Zhongshu who embraced correlative cosmology_ For Raetz. Dong Z hongshu ~discards me rational view of nacure which Z hou philosophy had developed and Xunzi had brought co completion~ (p. a31). As a consequence. Dong Zhongshu marks the point at which Confucianism returns to ~s uperstition ~! ~EthjcaJly as well as cognirively it (Confucianism) f.ills back on a level which the axial age philosophers had once overcome~ ( p. 231). Like Weber. Raetz defines correlative cosmology in terms of a lesser form of rationalization-a lower position on the yardstick. The only difference is that since Raea argues that a trarucendentaJ breakthrough occurred earlier. he sees the resurgence of correlative chinking as a regression. Why did the Chinese lapse:' Or. when put in terms of me entire history of China. why did China not achieve me full rationalizarion mat Raetz, following Weber. thinks occurred in the West~ Raeu; concludes with an explanation of this ~discrepancy between the original potentia] and the acrual historical development of China- (p. a75). Ultimately. me problem. as Raea: sees it. is that Confucianism failed to develop because the tension it posited between convention and mor:ali£Y (Ii and Ttn) wa.s wnot expressed in a trenchant manner- (p. an). What is amazing about ~his argwnent is how similar it is to Weber's. [n essence. Raetz is arguing that the problem with Confucianism is that it failed to maintain as extreme a tension between morality and convention as it should have. Moreover. since Raetz agrees that correlarive cosmology is nonrational. he argues that once correlative cosmology becomes dominant in the Han, cognition fell to a lower. nontranscendental level. Thus, despite all his discuuio ns of transcendence, Raetz is still com-

INTRODUCTION

"

mitted to claiming the same comparative point we have seen repeatedly (even if valued differently by different thinkers) since Weber: the Chinese tradition &iled to achieve the motivating tensions.so impomnt to the West. Method o f Analysis At the center of much of the secondary literaru re sketched above srand the cosmological texu of me Warring States and Han. The question is how to read these texts. Weber. as well as m ose who advocated a generally evolutionist lTamework. present cosmological models as part of an attempt to rationalize an existing magicaJ, theistic, animistic wo rldview. Correlative cosmology was thus a shift roward rationality and naruralism. even if it unfortunately retained many of the earlier magical notions. In Raet'Z's variant of this model, rational nat uralism (with a cosmological wrhetoric~) developed in early China, but then correlative cosmology arose in a th rowback to an earlier, nonrationaJ stltge of developmen t. However. the emphasis within this paradigm is on the shift from theism ro n2ruralism. The advocates of the cul tural-essentialist model. on the other hand. hold [hat these cosmological texts are indicative of a set of underlying as5umptions in early China. Figures as diverse as Granet. Mote, Chang. Grah2m, and Hall and Ames hold that even if cosmologic21 systems did not emerge until the third cenrury BC. {hey are nonetheless representlttive of a general ~Chinese~ way of thinking. In this view. theism never existed in Chinaeven in the Bronze Age. According to these interpretations. China and Greece (indeed, all of the West) are distinguished by f2dically different cosmologies-the Western tradition being defined in terms of {among other things) a disjunction between man and god. and me Chinese assuming an inherent correlation and link.age. As I will argue below, some of the material on self-diviniurion may force us to rethink both these lTameworks. The complex issues concerning the word spirit (,hen itII) in early Chinese textS are an example.)? As I discuss at lengrh in this book, the term is used to describe both spiriu who reside )7. WUJ.ud Petttson ("Making Conncaiom: p. 104) h.as suggc:md fr:msl:atirlg.hm ... "nuUlino,ity: a word th.at does capture lhe adjec:tival Kme of wn quile wdI. HowtYtr. lhe nomin.:al foron "numen" work. poorly fo describe wn when it refttl to spid". In this work. I will therefore comin"" [0 lIIiliu lhe cO<1l<1lon transLll ions of shtn as "Ipit ill Or "divinitie,: whtn IUed in the nominal form, and "Ipiritual" and "diyint" whtn wed irIthe adjec:tiyal. Such Irafltl:alioll' allow one 10 mOTe c.uily (O"""Y the Ihin, dlat appea~ ill tl~ arly lUll.

INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION

above and possess direct powers over natural phenomena and refined fomu of qi within humans. O n the question of how to account for these twO meanings of the term .w,." Hall and Ames have argued that "with the appearance of any given character in the text, the full seamless range of meanings is inrroduced." Our task as readers is "to reconstitute the several meanings of any term as an integrated whole::M This means that we must strive to understand the implications of a worldvlc:w in which sbc,., can simultaneously contain both meanings:

of specific arguments ;ldvanced within ;l p;lrticulu historical context. then they may relleal ;l great deal. In other words, instClld of trying to -reconstirure che several meanings of any term as an integrated whoie,- r will work to reconstruCf the debate within which these nrious meanings were developed and contested. I emphasize this point to underline one of the cenrra! dangers of contrastive approaches such as that of Hall and Ames. Building such ;l contrastive framework requires uking particulat texts out of context and reading them u assumptions of the entire culrures being compared. And. in tha particular case. restoring that context: allows us both to provide a historical account of why such S[;l[emenrs were nude ;lnd to restore the prollocative power that such st;ltements would have held at the rime. To reduce them to being simply examples of;l common Chinese W;ly of thinking makes it impossible for us to recoller the cultural potency that such d;lims possessed. In short, I w;lnt to restore the historical power of such sratemenrs by asking Why would humans claim they could become spirits~ How were such claims re;ld at the time~ And what is the culrur;ll history of such claimsWhat happened when people $;lid such things. ;lnd what happened when others opposed them! As we will sec. chese questions became m;ljor issues of stare policy and practice by the early imperial period. Similarly. an evolutionary perspectille on the changing meaning of ,hcnas a shift from a m;lgical to a naturalistic/ rationalistic/ humanistic worldview-creates problems as welL Unlike a cultural-essentialist ;lpproach, the evolution;lry perspective recognizes that ;l significant shift did occur in the perceived relations between humans and spirits over thiJ period. But ignoring the contexts in which specific claim.s were made in favor of a universal yardstick risb the ume kind of misundcrsanding as the cultural-esscnrialist model Even if one wanted to uscrt a universal yardstick of rationality. it would be mCllningless to assess the rationality or lack thereof of a gillen CCxt unlCS5 one firSt, at the minimum. ascertained the contemporary meaning of the text. Moreoller. the advocates of this model see the emergence of a correlative cosmology that links humans with divine forces as a development towllrd a fully r;ltionalisric perspective, bur one unfonunately coo mired in the earlier m;lgical worldview to mnk a complete brca.lcthrough tow;lrd rationality. Ellen Raea. who argues th;lt a mnscendental breakthrough did occur in Warring States China. bclielles thu Chinesc thinkers failed to develop the

Sbm, for example, is a compla nodon. meaning as it does both "hu~ spirituality," and "divinity." She,., does noc $Dllldi"'~J mean "human spirituality," and $DlllerillltJ "divinity." It always mealU both of these, and moreover, it is our business co cry and underat:l.nd philosophically how it u n mean boch. \V}u.c a.re the implicatiolU of chis particular range of maninp: where hummity and divinity arc concinuous~19 In other words, the dual meaning of the term reveals a way of thinking in which humanity and divinity arc continuous, and the job of the analyst is to reconsttuct that way of thinking. T heir argument continues: "How docs this factor into the familiar formula, rillll"'" heyi-the continuity between tillll (Heaven] and the human worJdf"40 Or, as they PUt it elsewhere: "We may wonder whar the faCt thar the single term lhe,., can mean both 'divinity' and 'human spirituality' in the classical Chinese language revca.ls about Chinese rc.1igiousness."41 In contrast, I argue in the chapters that follow that the term ,hell docs ,.,ot mean both "human spirituality" and "divinity." The term hn was used exclusively in the Bronze Age to refer to divinities. It was not until me Warring States period thac the term came to be applied to substances within humans, and this was P;lrt, I will argue, of an ;lttempt to redefine the tcm\ for specific pUrpoKS. It did not, therefore. represent an assumpcion m;lt "humanity and divinity are continuous." Rather. it involved a claim to dut effect-;l claim that was strongly contested throughout the entire early period. I ;lm noc sure what the dual meanings of the term would in themselves tc.ll us ;lbout "Chincsc" religiousness. But if. instead of trying [0 reconstruct a "Chin esc" lIiewpoinc, we sec the existence of different meanings as indic;ltive }S. Hall

and Ames, ni..su"lfro,., I~ Hu, pp. ~16-J7.

39· Jbid., p. l16. 40. Ibid., p. ~11. 41. Hall a.nd Ames, Allricifl"i"l OK ..... p. n6.

'l

INTRODU CTION

INTRODUCTION

kind of tension with the world thar occurred in the West. Accordingly. a full clc:vdopmenr of rationality was hindered. Beyond the obvious dangers of reading another ,wrure according to a universal yardstick of rationality. one of the immc:d.i.ue implications of such 2n approach is mat it binds the analyst to de-emphasizing tensions in the early tens: claims about the continuity between humans and divinities in W:arring Srares textS are explained away u (00 mired in 2n earlier m
We should instead work toward a more nuanced approach in which we make no II priori assumprions regarding single stuemenrs made in single texts and the significance of individual claims. Once this is done, and once we move away from a commitment ro seeing a lack of tension between humans and divinities as a guiding theme in early China. we may discover a rich, and perhaps more troubled, world of debue concerning humans, di· viniries, and sacrificial practice than previous analyses have accUlitomed us to expect &om Chinese texes. This methodological point is relevant as well to the question of how we should organiu the analysis of these texu. AJ should be dear from the recurrent references in the secondary literature to ·schools of thought in early China-such as Confucianism or Daoism-many scholars have organized their studies in [erms of such categories. I would argue, in contrast, that me aaempc to categorize teXtS in terms of schools is usually unhelpful and often misleading: rather, our concern should be to explicate the claims of each text within the debates of the time. 4J Discussion of these cJajms in terms of a 44 ·schoot is seldom heipfuJ. Even when dealing with a teX[ that explicitly posits itself within a defined textual tradition, the analyst should seek to understand how such a textual tradition is being posited and what claims are being made through that positing. All these interpretive strategies- reading in terms of schools, essential· izcd definitions of culrure, evolutionary frameworks-have the consequence of erasing the unique power that particular claims had ar the time. My strategy is. instead, to contextualiu through a different approach: to ask why statements are made in particular situations, to understand the cultural sig. nificance they would have had at the time, and to work out the historical consequences of the ensuing debates. But my goal is not to discredit the we of comparative terminology by simply pointing out the obvious lack of fit between me indigenous categories

'4

41. See Sivin, "SUIt. Co,mOl, 1nd Body in the Lan Three Cemuria B.C:: HencU:rlOIl.

TIlt Dmiopmtnl uti Dtclinr ojo,j"eJt COJ",lIioo: Wans Aihe, a..",%D ~"J Pllilfi(
'S

H

4J. For :on eudlenl critique of the we of the ~acegory "D~oiam: see Smn. "On the Word T a.mm :u a Soutee of Perpkxiry: Smn milia I rdued, and cquaIly powerfUl. crir.ique oCthe Utegot)' or "Nl{uralilU": see "1bc Myt h of the NalUralilU: in his MrtlitilW', PfHJ.",pb" uti Rt/ipn;~ AIItit>If 0,;114,

pp. '-n.

44. W ith [he e>laplion of Confucianism ~nd Mohism, many of the "schools' into which urly ChineK though, is often CltcgorizoeltI in the uny -raozhi: by Sima Tan (d. no 8C). AI Kidder Smith ("Sima Tan and lhe Invention of 010' ism, 'ugalism: el celeu") nu convincingly Ihown, many o{rhde 'schoolJ" were invented by Sima Tan and Irc therefore of quellion~b1e applicabili'y for d~U1IiolU of pre-Han lUll.

,6

INT RODUCT I ON

INTR ODUC TI ON

and the comparative terms-a point chat could o f course be made for any culture. On the contrary. I th ink comparative work can be very helpful, and I see my work as helping to develop.:l. compar;!civt framework. Ultimately. I hope (0 show mar an alternative: form of ,uINta! analysis man has heretofore been pracriced with these texts will aid in developing beettr comparative: methodologies. In particular. I will build on a number of recent works in ant h ropology to argue for a somewhat differen t appruach to srudy of early China; in tum, the: material on early C hina may help us [ 0 rechink issues in the anthropologicallirerature as well

I also critique in detail the argument, made for both C hina and Greece, that such movements-which I refer t o as ~self-divinizatio n movements- u ose through Ol re-reOlding of earlier shamanistic pnctice. I develop a comparison with earl y G reece ;md argue for Olfl approOlch to analyzing relatioru between hullWlS and divine powers in early Greece and China diffe rent &om the ones that have thus f:le been influential in sinology. In Chapter }. I look in detail at the rise of so-called nOlturalisric philosophy in Mencius Olfld ZhtlOlRgzi. I argue agairut a reading of these texa as representing either an wumption concerning the inherent continuiry betwee n humans Olfld H eaven in early C hina or a shift nom Olfl Olflimistic religion to a more rational worldview. On the contrary, as I hope to show, these teXTS should be read as statements in the contemponry debate over t he p0tentially divine powers of humans, and both texts contain attempa co t hink t hrough the implicOltions of such cbims for the relations of humOlfls and Heaven. If humans can indeed become spirits and can indeed gain divine powers, chen should they still accept the commands of a potentially capricious H eaven? Both Zhuangzi and M encius answer t h is question in the affirmative, although in different WOlyS. In o pposition to the way these figures are usually read, I argue that the (exu of Mencius Olfld ZhtlOlRgzi reveal the tremendous tensions emerging at chis time between Heaven and man. In C hapter 4, I turn to a study of correbrive cosmology. I argue that the emergence of correbtive systems in the late Waning Sates period wu directly rebred to the emergence of much stronger claims o f self-djvinization. In contrast to the satements in fourth -century IIC texes thac humans can attOlin powers comparable to t hose possessed by spirits. by the third century IIC numerous figures bevn to cbim to possess techniques thar enable them to become spirits.. In making this argument. I propose an alternative approach to reading early Chinese correbtjve thinking. If. as discussed above, Granet sought to explicate Chinese correlative thinking through a reconstruction of·Chinese t hinking.- Graham tried to do so by positing correlative t hinking ;u a universal mode of human thought. They disagree, in other words, on t he relationship of early Chinese correbtive thinking to contemporary observers: Granet emph;ui:zed diffe rence, G raham similariry. But both Granet ;md Graham ho pe to explain why cosmology would have seemed natural in urly China. And my disagreement with boch of their approaches begins here, I argue, building o n the pointS discussed in C hapters 2. and }, chat cosmology was in

me

Oudine: In Chapter I , I uriliu paleographic materials and received rexes to discuss che: complexities of ritual practices in che Bronze Age dealing with divinities. I analyze changes in notions of t he n,:l[Ure: o f spirits and. ancestors, as well as the rituals relating to both groups. r question several of the d ominilm models for Olnalyzing this mate rial Olnd ugue thOlt, conrrOlry co most interpretOltions, t hese documena revul Ol highly Olgonistic world, in which divine powers were perceived to be COlpricious Olnd in which humOlns were in t he position of trying. within t heir limited Olbilicies, to utilize sOlcrifices Olnd divinOltions to understand;md influence the spirit world. More specifically. I argue chOlt chere is Oln overriding concern in chese mOlterials to Olnthropomorphize the d ivine. Building on the work of David Keighdey, I cuce the attempa, through ritual puctices. to make che spirits into ancestors who could t hen be arrOlngcd intO Ol hieruchy Olfld directed co work on behalf of t he living to obcOlin suppon for the non-Olflcescr.a.i spiria u well C hOlprer 2. focuses on the emergence, during t he Warring States period, of numerous attempa co bypass the dominOlflt modes of orientation toward the world of spiri cs (involving. Olmong other things, divinOltio n Olfld sacrifice) through practices of seif-cuirivOltion. The advocOltes of these practices begln aniculating new definitioru o f che nOlture of spirits Olfld of humOlfliry Olnd the relatioruhip between che two. More precisely. these Ol n iculatioru we re Olttempes [0 reduce the d istinctio n between h urTWlS Olnd spirits Olnd co argue chu, through proper pnctices, one can Olttain powers compOlr.l.ble to those possessed by spirits and that one could disperue with divinuion and surifices. InsceOld of Olnthropomorphizing the divine, humOlru, through self~Iike spirits.~ cultivOltio n, could themselves become ru

wel1-

'1

,8

INTRODUCTION

INTROOUCTION

(Quntuintuirivt in early China. Not only did it arise late (as Graham COfreedy points out), it arose in direct opposition [0 the sacrificial practices dominant .at the rime. Correlative thinking emerged OI.S :l language of critique agairut me dominant nonons of the time, and it remained ",language of critique and opposition cluoughout the early imperial period. To develop chis argument, I analyze numerous late Warring SUtes eexts in full. I also review the amhropologicalliteracure on sacrifice 2nd cosmology that has betn so influential in sinological discussions of Chinese correlative thinking and argue that a somewhat different reading of that liter.nure. particularly of Graner and Claude Levi·Strauss, will allow for an alternative. and in my opinion more convincing. understanding of Chinese correlative

of spontaneous procC$SCS and patterns, not directed by spirits at :all, Lu J ia :and o thers like him could deny the theistic underpinnings of much of early H:an elite culture. If spirirs do not control n:atura.l phenomena, then both the theomorphic pretensions of t he emperors and the claims of :autonomy made by some practitioners of self-divini:zacion could be opposed. Chapter, is an in-depth srudy of the cosmologies preseored in several chapters of the Huainanzi, which build on the ascension and self-divinization literatures to argue fo r a cosmos populated by theomorphic humans :and :anthropomorphic gods. I analyze why these cosmologics were being presented and wh:ar claims were being m:ade. J also discuss the continuing proliferation of self-diviniz.uion movements during the early H:an and trace the various appeals thu were made for such powers, explicating why they became so prominent during this period. Chapter 8 srudics the shifts in the impcri.a.l S.1crificial system from t he time of Emperor Wu to the late first century IC in response to the contemporary debuts over how the system should operate. I analyze Emperor Wu's cre:ation of a new S.1crificial system bued upon Taiyi (rhe Great One), as well as Dong Z hongshu's and Sima Qian's critiques of the emperor. I then investigate why, in 31 IC, the impetial court embr:aced the :arguments of the Til-ius, :abolished significanr portions of its S.1crificw system, and PUt in pl:ace a new set of S.1crifices to H eOlven and E:arth. These new S.1crifices were based in ~rr on a particular re:adiog of documents concerning the s:acrificw sysrem of t he Wcstern Zhou. I seek to discern the significance dut had come to be usociated with these VOifious S.1crificial rites and to expl:ain the reasons for this shift in sacrifici.a.l practice. I argue that the shift was in ~rt:a reaction to the cl:ainu of autonomy th:at h:ad developed in the self-divini:z:ation movemenu. Although these movements h:ad themselves flourished in reaction to the theomorphic presentations of the early Han COUrt, the claims of aUtonomy that came to be :associated with these movements were seen as highly dangerous :and ultimately provoked:a strong shift in COUrt policies. The new sacrificial system put in place at the end of the first century IC involved a rejection of :any cla.inu ro sclf-d iviniutjon or theomorphism on the pOift o f humans. Humans and Heaven were posited as normatively correlated with each other, but they were also distinguished, with each given irs proper sphere of :activity. Divine kingship was rejected; the ruler was defined as human. There:after, self-diviniz:ation and ascension c:ame to be usociated with millenari:an movements opposing the imperial court.

faCt

thought. Chapter s is a study of the large literarure on spirit journeys and ascension from early China. Although this literarure has usually bc:en read as a survival of shamanism, I argue in contrast that it makes sense only when placed within the historical contexrs sketched in Chapters :1 through 4. In particular. several of the texts represent an attempt (Q develop selfdivinizarion c4ims to argue that humans not only can become spirits bur also can kave their body altogether and ascend [0 the heavens. The goal of Chapter s is to analyze these clainu in depth and see precisely why they we re bc:ing advanced at the rime. Ch:apt"er 6 rums to Qin :and carly Han COUrt practices. I reconstruct aspecu of the s:acrificw system and imperi.a.l ideology of the Qin and early Han COUtu and an.alyu the reasons for the prominence ofJanE'hi (masters of formulas) at the courtS of the First Emperor and Emperor Wu of the H:an. My main interest in chis chapter is to investigate the emergence during this period of theomorphic claims of rulership and the resulting debates that arose concerning the emperor's proper relationship to the world of spirirs. I reconstruct the historic.al complexity of these vuious stances over the counc of the Qin :and early Han empires to show both the rise of theomorphic forms of rulership and t he reaction against it. I also crace the intensifiarlon o f effortS by various offici.a.l.s to develop correl.1tive models during mis period. I focus in p:arcicular on Lu jia, who strongly :advocated following the transmitted texu of the ancient S.1ges. Lu Jia rumed to correlative models to critique both the dominant imperial ideology :and the v:arious self-divini:z:uion claims that were becoming increasingly popular among the carly H:an elite: by arguing that the cOlmOl conllsts

"

I

Anthropomorphizing the spirits Sacrifice and Divination in Late Bronze Age China

In both strains of the secondary literature discussed in me Introduction, a common reading of the Chinese Bronu Age pTev2m: humans and spiries were seen as continuous and were perceived to be harmoniously linked. Moreover, this period is repeatedly sun .as the formarive era in Chinese history. the period when one first finds the assumption of a continuity between the human and divine realms t hat, the argument goes, t hereafte r petvades Chinese history. Weber saw this .as a restricting aspect of Chinese culrore. as did Roct'Z, who argued that it ultimately reversed the transcendenw breakthrough of the Axial Age. Most of the scholars we looked at, howevcr, from Chang and Mote to Gnlham and Schwam. fully cdebr.ned it. But is it true! Were humans and spirits seen as linked in a harmonious continuum? And is it true that this period marks the beginning of a set of assumptions that (for bener or worse) predominated in later Chinese history~ In order to explore this question, it will be wonhwhile to look anew at some of these materiaLs :as well :as at some of the secondary literature devoted to the Bronze Age.

ANTHROPOMORPH I ZING THE SPIRITS

ANTHROPOMOR P H I ZING THII SPIR I TS

"

The Foundations of Chinese Cosmological and Bureaucratic Thought One thinke r who has tremendously influenced several recent scholars of the

C hinese Bronze Age is Mi rcca Eliade. It was Eliade who populuized the notion that primitive culrures univers:lUy
J3

~ interpreted a.s misfortunes, so du.t, if a city were laid out as an im4go mwndi with the cosmogony a.s paradigmatic model, it became necessary co maintain this parallelism betWecn rnOlCTocosmoS :and microcosmos by potrticipation in the seasonal festivals rhat constituted man's contribution eo the regulation of cyclic rime,:and by incorporating in the planning a gcnerous amount of symbolism!

The capiral thus serves as an axis mundi, in the same way as a ~shaman's sapIlng " • docs.' After describing the "cosmo-magical basis" of urban fo rms, systematized by Eliade as involving th ings such as a "parallelism between ehe macrocosmos and me microcosmos" and necessitating the use of ritual ro "mainrain the harmony berween the world of gods and ehe wo rld of men,H as well as a "participation in the symbolism of the center, as expressed by some form of axis

mundi,..6 Wheadey then noces me degree to which Chinese thinking conforms to the Eliadun model: Indeed, the a.strobiological conceptual framework of which thesc ideas are :an cx .. pression wa.s structurally conformable to the associative or co-ordinarivc stylc of thinking of which the Chinese wcre perhaps the foremost exponents. In f:act, it might even ~ said that the prc-establishcd harmony of the Chinese universe, which was OlChieved when all beings spontaneously followed the internal necessities of their own natu rc, and which led Chinese philosophers to seek reality in relation rather than in substance, represented the most sophisticated expression of asrrobiological 7 concepts ever attained by any people. Not only does China conform to this "traditional

N8

way of thinking. but

China is in fact [he fullese and mose sophisticated expression of it. In this specific sense, Wheatley's argumenr is quiee comparable to Graham's view chat China was the civilization thac most fully developed the universal mode of correlative thinking.

K . C. C hang has a similar argument, although he builds it on slightly different foundations. In a high ly influential article, Chen Mengjia argued mat, 9

in the S hang dynasty, kings we re shamans. K. C. Chang developed this argument in detail and, as mentioned in the Introduction, saw shamanism as

P4Urrn, in Comp"T41i"e RtligiM, pp. 99- 100. 1. Ibid . , p. 101, referring to Graner, '-" ptmh chinoi..,. p. 114. Su also EJ.i,.de, Tht s..c.c:! d,.J Profane. p. J9. Eliade', ref<,rence ro Graner i.! slightly misleading. Grand. concern in the P'luage thar E1iade cite. is rhe notion of the ruler a, rhe microcosm of the universe. AI Gra· net argue_ on [he previow page: "he [the king] iJ [he center, lhe pivol of the world" (u. pt"m ,hi"oile, p. )1)). Elude would hav. found bolter .uppor! for hi.! argument in Granel'l dUen ... lion of lim( and lP'lce in Qlinese dl0ugh! (u. f
I""

4.

Ibid" p. 417·

S. Ibid.

Ibid., p. 418. ?Ibid. a. Ibid. 9. Chen Mengji;!, ·Slung dai de ,henhlla yu wwhu . "

6.

lS

ANT H ROPOMORPH I Z I NG THE SPIR I TS

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING THI! SPIR I TS

lying ~t me heart of Chinese culture. He compiled bodies of evidence that, in his opinion, Hpoinc to an ancient Chinese shamanism at the core of ancient Chinese belief and ritual systems, which were preoccupied wi th the NIl interpenetration of heaven and eanh. Chang did not indicate whic h scholarly definition of shamanism he had in mind in making these arguments, bur he did occasionally refer to Eliade.12 Moreover, as is apparent ITam the passage quoted in the preceding paragraph, Chang's interpretacion of a shamanistic cosmology is identical to Eliade's. T h us, although Whc.adey did nor lrgue that the Shang kings were shamans, Chang's reading of early Chine~ culture is quite simib.r [0 the one

hoi or other substances bring about a trance, during which the shaman engaged in imagined f1ighe Possibly, but there is :u yet no evidence for mis. The role of animals 14 in the ritual art of the Shang may provide significant clUCl.

34

10

devdopecl by Wheatley. For Chang, divination-the ure Shang rinul about which, because of oracle-bone inscriptions. we know me mon-was based in shamanism. as was the bin (or Hhosting ritual: H

)

Wu Shang divination an act of Shang

shamanism~

The inscriptions make it cleat they were directed to long-departed mcestors, md that the diviner served as an intermediary. The inscriptions often COntain the word bin, which in later classical texts usually means to receive as ;a. guClt or to be a guest. In rhe oracle bone inscriptions, the wotd is often placed between the word for king md the name of a specific ancestor or of Oi; the Supreme God. A phrase consisting of these dements is sometimes inte rpreted as "the king receives as a guest a specific ancestor.~ or "the kings receives :u a guest the Supreme God." But more likdy it means [h:u the king "called upon" a departed ancestor or God. . .. In any event, mere was a Shang ritual that enabled the king and the spirits to be togerher, prClumably brought about by some kind of middleman. The act of divinatio n was intended. similady, to bring the middleman 1l diviner and the spirits together. The divin;a.tion ritual itself involved either the ascent of rhe shaman to the spiri ts o r the descent of the spirits

to

rhe shaman:

The descent of me spirits or th e ascent of the shaman or king was achieved in a manner not a1togerher clear. Music and dance were apparently part of the ceremony. Alcoholic drinks were possibly involved: the Shang were notorious drinkers, and many bronze ritual vessels were dCligned to serve alcoholic beverages. Did the a1co-

Chang builds on his rheory of shamanism to provide a reading of the origin of the Chinese srate comparable to that given by Wheatley. Chang reads the 1m Neolith ic in China as an "Age of Jade Cong [jade rubes]. the period iS when shamanism and politics joined forces: Chang reads mese jade rubes as symbols ofHthe interpenetr.uion of heaven and carrh and as thus repreH

H16

senting HOI. microcosmic axis mundi. The Chinese Bronze Age. "the period l of th e further development of shamanistic politics,H followed from [his. ? Thus, like Wheatley. Chang's reading is similarly based on the notion mar Chinese civilization developed through ritual specialists who artempted to join Heaven and Earth by building a particular axi, m!lndi. Julia Ching has expanded on this point as well. Chinese civilization, she argues. in part came together because of a common inspiration. that the human being is open to the divine and the spiritual, attuned to the divine and the spiritual, and desirous of becoming one with the divine and the spiritual.. I am here referring [ 0 the familiar adage that describes the harmony underlining Chinese thought and civilization: H eaven and humanity are one-tianran hqi (literally: Heaven and the human being join as one).I& Like Han and Ames, Ching posits the notion of a condnuity between H eaven and man as a basic assumprion of Chinese thought. But Ching goes on [0 claim that the origin of mis notion lies in shamanistic experience: It is an adage that I bdieve ro have originated in that very mystic and ecstatic union bcrween the human being and the possessing deity or spirit. This was [he primeval. experience, me experience of a shaman. It was never forgotten. It has been cdebraced in songs. myths and rituals. It was formulated philosophically as an expression of rhe continuum betWeen the human being as the microcosm of the universe as nucrocosm. And this microcosm-macrocosm correspondence h:u been basic to 19 most of philosophising in China.

'4· Ibid., p. S5· 'So K . C. CMng. "An

10. 'The: argument is mOlt!UJ.Jy developed in K. C. Chang, Art, M]Ib, QIId Ril~QI. pp. 44-SS. II. K. C. Clung. •Amicnr China and Irl Anthropological Significame; p. 164. I:l. See. e.g .• K. C. CMng, "The Animal in Shang and Chou Bronu' Art: p. S4J. IJ, K. C. Chang. Art, My1/" GncI /lit""', p. H .

Essay on Co",; p. 41 . •6. K. C. Chang. "Ancient China and lu Anthropological Signilkame: p. '58. 17. K. C. Chang. "An Essay on o,ng: p. 4l. IS. Ching. MYJtililll' QnJ Kin""ip i,. O,i .... , p. Ki. 19. Ibid.

"

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING THB SP IRITS

ANT HROPOM ORP HIZ ING TH B S PIRITS

The ecstatic experience between the sham;1n and deity, therefore, provKlc:d primeval experience of Chinese culture. and the: cOI'n:Litivc: cosmology found in later Chinese philosophy wu an aprc:s.sion of this experience:. For Ching. this experience is dirc:cdy comparable to the primeval experiences of oneness thac Eliade cites as the root of religious life:

critique, therefore, is based on claims concerning what he calls ·stages of sodal development. - Since the Late Shang kings were ruling a Bronze Age. 2grarian sate, he concludes thar "the Lue S hang kings were not sh2mans; or "were, at best, 1ight' or 'small' shamans, whose involvement in the full sh2manic experience was much reduced from what it might once have been at an earlier stage of societal development: They were ·bureaucratic media· tors" who had ·so routinized and dis'iplined older forms of religious medi2' tion" that only the "dvilized trappings" of an earlier shamanism would still have existed. n This argument thu the Shang state was orderly, bureaucrat\(", and "civilized" recurs throughout Keightley's artick.. Thus, he reads the bi" ritual ac. cording to a similar bureaucratic meft{aliry.l~ concluding. in opposition to Chang. that the ritual was nor shamanistic:

me:

1" il'" !(mpor( (,Once long ago' or 'Ar thar time'). Thus do the Gospels begin their chaprc:.... ThlU does Mirce.a Eliade describe the: primeval, ucred time when humankind had irs original experience of onenell$ with the deity. This~wu an aperience recapitulated in myrh and run:l.cted. in rirnal. Eliade speaks more of India. and of the Australian aborigines, then he does of Chinese civilisation. But his insight. muraW mutandis, is relleered in the: ChineJe experience as wdl. 2S I have just de-

scribed. ;K) A primordi.al experience of a linbge between hwnans and deities exists in all humanity, and the distinctiveness of Chinese civilization lies in its remembrance of this experience. A very different approach to the study of Bronze Age China has been undertaken by David Keightley. Although he occasionally qUOtes Eliade,lI Keighdey's understanding of the Shang originates in very different intellectual sources. Accordingly, his interpretation differs markedly from those scholars, such as Wheatley, Chang. and Ching. who base their interpret:!.tions of the Slung upon Elude. In particular, Keightley rejects {he shamanistic hypothesis. In cOnfTaSt to both K. C. Chang and Julia Ching. David Keighdey has convincingly questioned the prevalence (or even presence) of shamanism in Bronze Age C hina.21 Keighdey's argument, based on an exhaustive review of the evidence, is that Chang's theory of the continuing presence of shamanism in the Shang is wrong. To the contrary, Keighcley argues, the transition to a state society involved a routiniution and control of whatever shamanistic practices might have existed earlier. S hamanism as discussed by figures Wee Chang would have ·flourished at an earlier, pre-agrarian, hu nrergatherer sage of social deveiopment." "The rise of agrarian cultures, accord. ingly, like that of the Late S hang. has been associated with a reduction of me role played by shamans at the sate levd, or by its reorienation.- Keighdey's

Ibid., pp. %i-xii. Keiglllky, "Tilt; Rcligiow Comm!ulIent: p. 115",8. u . Keig/nley, "ShamiUliJ.m, Dt>.lh, and rhe Aneuton."

10.

11. Sec, e.g.,

31

The Shang king was the ,ommunicacor with rhe hierarchy of the dead; he attracted. them to his cult ,cntcr, in sequence, with rigorously scheduled sacrifices and hosted them with ordered groups of rituals; he communicated with them through thc highly formali«d techniques of pyromandc divinarion: he commissioned irucriptions, caflled into divination bones, th1t recorded the whole procedure in detail. Orderly divination, che hosting of guests (whether a1ivc or dead), sacrifice-chese were the ways of civiliud. men dealing.. nor with the wild and the unknown, not with ecstatic inspiration or [rance, but, through ritual and schedule, with their own kin. ~ Both sacrifice and divination are here explic:tble as expressions of a rational, bureaucr:ltic, civilized system. rather than of the shamaniscic model ad· vanced by Chang. Keightlet's concern wich rationalization in the successive stages of social development reveals a scrong Weberian influence. And, like Weber, Keight· ley is interested in how the religious orientations he finds in t he Shang played out in bter Chinese history. So, like Chang. Keightley sees the Shang 2S che origin of later C hinese cultural orientations, although he and Chang read this history very differently. k Keighdey argues in his seminal 'The Religious Commitment: S hang Theology and the Genesis of Chinese Politi· ("11 Culture": "It is the argument of this exploratory essay rh2t the secul2r values and institutions representing che great tradition of the Zhou and Han dynasties we re characterized to a significant extent by habits of t hin king and 11. Ibid., pp. 816-17, ho. Ibid., pp. 808-14. See ilio Keigtulcy, "T~ Rcligiow CO'lImiulIem: p. 118. 1}. Keigluley, "Sh.:ltnaniJm, Duth.. and the Anculon: p. Bll., 14.

,8

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING THB SPIRITS

ANTHP.OPOMOP.PHIZING THB SPIRITS

acting mat had been sanctified at least a millennium earlier by the: religious

IfWheadey (like Chang and Ching in this particular sense) saw the signiS.

logic of the Shang theology and cuk..26 For Kcightley, however. what one finds in the Shang is not Chang's shamanism bur Weber's vision: !he radical world optimism which Weber identified as a central Confucian value was already present in Shang religious belief...:'7 As he: ebbo(;lccs: "In Weberian terms, then. we can refer co the hi-

C:lnce of C hina as lying in its embodiment of. in t he fullest sense, a primordial cosmological emphasis on the linkage of the hwn211 and sacred reahns, Keightley sees the signific211ce in the peculi:lr bureaucr;lric logic of Shang lI religion.

erarchical. contractual, rational. routini:z:c:d. m:arhc:nurical. computmental-

ized nature of Shang ancestor worship as bureaucratic...2I The Shang. then. wu the o rigin of a bureaucratic mentality that Weber-correctly. in Kcight-

ley's view-saw as a dominant aspect oflaccr Chinese culture. For Keighdey, the oracle-bone inscriptions uvea.! a bureaucratic mentality mat both rou tinized whatever sh2lt\.aniscic tendencies might have c:r1sred in me Neolithic

"

However, as we saw in the Introduction. the Webemn reading of Chi· nese culture does shue a number of similarities with the cultura.l·essentialist model underlying (in somewhat different ways) Wheatley'S and Chang'S interprerarions. Thus, although Keightley rejects the sh:lm:lnism hypothC5is for euly Chin:l 2lld a.lthough he does implicitly revise Wheatley'S interprerarion, he a.Iso sees hwnans 2lld divinities as harmoniously linked in early

Weber, seu as characterizing later Chinese culture. Keight!ey's position leads him to a view of urban genesis somewhat differ-

China. He explicitly compares this with the situation in early Greece: 'Greek epia also derive much of their complexity 2lld dramatic tension from the frank recognition th:lt unresolvable conflicts exist in the world. This fund.amenta.l assumption is symbolized in the conflict between the va.lucs

ent from that given by Wheatley. H e refers quite F...vorably to Wheatley's emphasu on the importance of religion in the genesis of the Chinese stue. 29 But

and wills of men and gods: According to Keighdey, no such discord be· tween gods and men can be found in e:lrly China: "There was little discord

period and iniri:ated the "radical world optimism" th.u Keighcley, foUowing

Keightley reads the significance of religion in Chin:l differently. IfWhudey is working from Eliade, Kcightley is working from Weber. Aner describing the importance of religion for the Sh:lngu;ue, Keighdey continues; There is nothing uniquely ChinC5e in this account 10 far. RdigiotU bdieflw played limilar rolell in the genC5is of other Statell. ' Kcighcley providC5 another reference here to Wheacley.) Signiflcant in the Chinelle f;aSe , however, were the moda of conceprualiz.uion cemu..! ro the rheology. For it is in the logical rdatiolUhips that Shangtheol. ogy POSnllated as basic, and in the emotiolU as$ociated with those rdarionshiJl', that we find the characteristic dements which influenced the devdopment of political cul· ture in Zhou and later rimes: We find, in fact, a paradoxical situarion: a Shang ltate penneated with a commitment to the anCC5tOrs, strongly religious in the torality of it. demands; and yet we find that the commitment can be chana:eriud as nonreligiolU, nonmysreriolU, and- because 10 explicidy goal direaro-rational in its logic. The logic may be characterized, in faa, with approprUte caurioru to which I shall rerum, as "bureaucratic' in Max Weber's sense of the term. JO

liS, Keiglnky, !be Religious Commitment: pp, llZ - ll. l,. Ibid., p. l16. See:ilio Keightky, "dt
19. Ibid., p. 114. 10. Ibid,

between gods and men ... , The Chin ese knew neither a Prometheus nor a '7 _

~~ .

Hn

Like Wheacley, Chang. and Ching. therefore, Keighdey sees in the Shang the origiN of what he deems to be dominant orienrations of Chinese thought. Moreover, a.lrhough his reading o f these domimnt orienrations is bued on a Weberian imerpreCition and a.ltho ugh he (very convincingly, in my opinion ) rejects the shamanism hypothesis. he. too, emphasizes a con· rrast between China and Greece bued on the tragic cwmology of the former and the optimistic cosmology of the l:ltter. Indeed, Keightley's critique of C h:lng was aimed a.lmost entirely at pointing OUt the lack of 2lly evidence for ecst:ltic techniques :lnd ascensions. But the most imporunt issue for Chang was his claim that, in the Shang. h umans 2fld gods were linked in har· mony- and Keighdey, despite his enormous differences from Chang.

]1. Keiatulq'l argument is forulwiowd in a ~ of Whc.adey·s boolc rh.n Keightlq wrote lOn\e five yean ~fOu ,1M: artide uoder dis
Urbanum,· p.1a~. ll. Kt:ighlky, "Clean Hands and Shining HeI,neu,· pp. 41 - 4:.

40

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING T H B SP I RITS

AN T HROPO M ORPH I ZING THe SP I RITS

.accepts this as well. As was noted in the Introduction. [he Webf:rim perspective 2nd the culrural-euentialisr perspective (Ktighdey and Chang respectively, in this insrance) read early China in similar ways. Thus, although Chang and Ching emphasize shammiscic union of humOlJ1 and deity in the ou.cle bones, 2nd Keighcley emphasizes ratiorul. bureaucratic hierarchy. aU three agree that Shang divination and sacrifice practices reveal an :u.sumption of harmony between humans and diviniries. In what follows. I question pans of [his reading. In doing so, 1. follow D2vid Keighcley's resea rch on Shang oncle·bone inscriptions closely and. in particular, build directly on Keightley's arguments concerning whal he: alli "making the ancestors.oJ) But I .argue that 2cceprance of Keighdey's .argumenu opens to question some of the notions of harmony thar Keighdey himself, u well as so many o ther scholars, want to read into the Shang.

Crackmwng on xi"m~o, Nei divining: the king will have the mwng of misfortune." (Heji 5)6)

me

The Agon of Humans and Spirits in the Lire Shang T he main god of the pantheon was Di,}04 who conrrolled the wind and rain: Divining: "Cnckmwnf on "i"Oi" (day )J, Zheng divining: This eleventh momh, Di will order [he rain: ' Divining: "This eleventh month. Di will not order the rain: (Hcji s.6S8 ]E)

4'

Cradtmalcing on .xi"mAo, Zheng divining: "The king will not have the mwng of milfortUne." (H cji 5)6) Crackmaking on WIIXU. Bin divining: "This city will be without t he having of misfortune." (Heji1.8sa) Divining: "This city will have the sending down of misfortUne.· (Hcji 7.8S1)

A con5=t give-and-take eristed berween human actions and divine powers. In a world controlled by spirits. certain human actions we re seen u coming intO contact with divine powers, and it was thus around these actions t har sacrifices, rituals, .and divinations came to be associated. The goal of these .activities was to influence. mollify, and determine the will of the divine powers, to persuade them to grant assistance, and to prevent (hem from making disaste rs. T :ike, for ex.ample, the issue of m::tking ::t settlement. Following .are a number of inscriptions from Period 1:36 Divining: "The king will make a Settlement, [for if he doa] Di will approve." (Hej 14,101)

Divining: "On the next guim~o [day 40J, Di will order windJ: (H cji 6721£)

Divining: "The king ought not to make a. settlement. (for ifhe dOCl not] Di will approve." (Heji 14.101)

The vel)' existence of these divinations implies that there is no belief here that O i will necessarily give rain when humans need it. Indeed, Oi often created disuters for the king;

Cradtmaking on renz-i, Zheng divining: · We will make a settlement, (for if we doJ Dj will nOf oppose." Approved. Third month. (Heji 14,106)

Oi will make (fori the king misfortUne. (Heft 14,182) As did other spirits: Que divining: "Huan (the Huan River] will make (for) this city misfortUne.· (Heft 7,8S4) One of the concerns in divin.adon was thus powers intended (0 send down misfortune:

(0

discover whemer the divine

David Keiglnley. "TI~ Making of the Anccltorl: )4. For the exact naturc ofDi,lee below. pp. 48- 4!i. IS. Guo and Hu.jiapwt" IItji sAsS 1E (herein.fter ciled in tI~ fut 2.

In o rder to nuke a stttlement, a divination must be performed to dttennine the will of OJ. It seems plausible to hypothesiu that founding a settlemmt involved bringing divinely controlled natural elements inco the human re.alm and required divin.ation to determine if the action would be accepuble (0 Oi. Conmry to Whe.adey, me making of a settkment did not involve correlative concerns or a notion of an uu mundi. The concerns were based, instead. on a potentially agonistic relationship between humans and Di: Oi controlled

)6. Period I is Dong Zuobin', lerm for th. e~rlicl1 grouping of o racle,bone inscripriollJ, dating 10 the reign ofWu Ding. For convenient 'tllllmarie, of the issues Jurrounding the pcrlodlUlion of ofacle-bot~ ilUCripriollJ. ge Ktigluley. So.orm of Sha"l Hi,tory. pp. !iI- ill: S luughnes,y, "Recent Appro.aches 10 Oracfe-aone Pcriodiution": and Li Xueqin and Peng

l).

tlrji)

YUlhang. YiMW Fl" p"qi :f'I"jiw.

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING T H B S PIRI TS

ANTHIlOP O M OIl PHIZING THB SPIIliTS

(he land, and humans had to utilize rituals to mae th at land available for J7

human use. Agriculture was another repeated (opic of concem in (he early porrions of the corpus of oracle bones. Like the making o f a settlement, t he preparation of fldds involved a h uman appro priation of natural elements controlled by divine powers. As we find in twO Period I inscriptions:

On foho .. divining: "The king will order the opening of the flclds at Jing: "At PN open thefldds: (Htji n,~) T h us, a successlUl millet harvest depended in parr on whether the Many Yin opened the fields in the west: according (0 the third inscription in the set, they would receive millet only if t hey did not p repare the westem fields. Here again, the hunun appropriation of a field could potentially upset the

Command Yin to prepare the great flddJ.

Ouglu nOl: co mmand Yin to p£epare (he greal: fldds. (Htji 9,471) The divinations reflect an attempt to determine whether this act of preparing the flelds, of readying chern for hwnan appropriation, was acceptable ro the divine powers. Similar concems underlie the opening of a field for agriculture. The following is a set of inscriptions located on a single scapula. Reading from bot(om to rop:J.S Cnpihai, divining: ~ At PN open the fidcb:

On p ihai divining: ~We will pray for millet, {starting] from ShangJia.·

19

On p ihai, divining: "The king will command (he Many Yin to open the fidds in the west, (for if they do, we) shall receive miller." Onpihai divining: "The Many Yi n ought nOI to do (Ihisl, [for ifrhey do nor, we) shall receive millet: On wuchc>l divining: ~We will pray for millel, (starting) from Shang Jia. We will offer me /iIw (burning lacriflce):

)1. Indeed, I would quwion not only Whenkfl ruding of the Shangmaurial bw his use of a correblive modd to o«DUnl for the riK of dries in general. As noc:ed above, WheatIey'S :l.l"gummr concerning rhe uiJ m,,""i wu hued on rhe work of ElUde. Eliadc in rum hued his argumenll on the Pan-Babylonian kbolau-with the tn>ci.tI diffe«:nce that the Pan_Babylonian k hobrl l;lW nOlions of the ACted caller as difIUsed !tom the Near East, whereas ElUdt; I.I.W them as a I1f1iYC1"W aspcet of what he aIkd primitive cultures. In other wor
divine powers. Plowing involved similar issues: Crackmaking on ... , divining: i he multitudes will do the plowing. There will bt no lou... ." (Heft 8)

As did CUtting grasses for hay: Divining: "Do the gnu-cutting [i.e., make hay l. The rain will nOt . , . ." (Htji t3 <7!iB) M oreover, the h:.trvC$ts themselves were controlled by divine powers: On pilla;, divining: -rhe Many Yin ought nOt undertake the harvesting of the millet: (Ht)i l),209)

jiaWII, divining: "Today we will lui [sacrifice), [for if we do, we) will receive millet [i.e., a good harvest)." (Htji 2,124) The goal of these divinations was thus to determine whether the divine powers would allow hwnans ( 0 appropriate natural resources. But just as divine anions affect the human realm, so human acdons have repercussions in the divine world. I explore (his point more JUI.ly below; here it

is enough to point out t hat a recurrent concern in the inscriptional material is [0

determine (he proper amount of sacrifices at any given time that will influ-

ence the d ivine powers in a way f2vorable for human concerns: The king will set: fon:h jades to Zu Yi, (give) the burnt sacrifice offering of three penned sheep, and ckave three greal: .... This w:u used. (Hlp )l,sn) .. , will make me ding sacrifice at rhe ceive assistance. (Htji 2,34S)

twO

shrines, (for if he does,) the king will re-

Crackmaking on bi>lgti: "In sacrificing (to) Zu Yi, we will offer the ding [sacrifice!, [for if we do,! the king will receive a.u inance.· (Htji a7,n6) T he sacrifices are aimed at gaining assistance fo r the king: making a particular aacrifice, it is hoped, will resul( in divine aid. The purpose of the divina-

ANTHRO P OMORPH I ZING THB S PI RITS

ANTHROPOMORPH I Z I NG T HB SPIR I TS

44

rion wu rhus apparently to determine if a particular sacrifice, offered

at 2

particular time, would indeed have the desired effect. A similar concern with controlling the: divine spiria can be sun in t he:

frequency of exorcism ritw.ls in the: inscriptional corpus. If the divinOlitlons concerning agriculture: and scttlements we re aimed at making divinely can-

rrolled land .available fo r human appropriation. exorcism involved driving the spiria aw.ay from the human realm altogethe r. D ivining: "Make an ao rrum (to d iminarc] Fu Hao's trouble." (Hlp 13.6-.6)

At times, th is ritual form of controlling and nun.aging the divine forces

could encompus luge portions of the pantheon: Crackmaking on )'iilai, Bin divining; "M1kc ehe great exorcism {$umng] from Shang J ia." (Htji '-4,860)

There: is, thll.!. in the 1.:1.[( Shang, a constant agon between hum2ns and spirits. with spirits controlling natural phenomena and hwnans anempting to appropriate aspects of the natural world for t heir own benefit. This results in seemingly endleu attempu by humans to placate, coax, and influence t he spirits through sacrifice and divination. And me anempt seems often to fail: the spirits are capricious and far more powerful man the rituals h umans use to control them.

.,

The divination is an attempt to determine the temple name of X iao S~ as well as the day on which he o r she receives cuk·) And the following inscription reveals that Xiao S i (still being referred to by me name he or she had while alive) is ve nerated on a gui day: Cnckmaking on rrllWCI, Da divining: ' On the next gi.llwi. offer to Xiao Si three pcnned.ahecp and X-sacrifice one ox: (Htji :z.PI9) O nce the day o n which the ancestor will receive sacrifices has been deter· mined, the ancestor then receives a temple name based on that day. Thus, for example, Farher Yi receives cult on an yi day: Cracluniling onji~,hno (day 41). Que divining: 'On the next yili (day 41.1, make an offering [0 Father Yi of penned sheep." Use. (Htji 1,40 l .if) This panern holds throughout our sourcCl. The rituals follOWing death, therefore. involved the attempt to make the spirit of the deceased into an anCeStor and to place t hat ancestor within a ritual system designed by the living. As Keighdey has brilliantly argued, t he Shang were "makingW their ancestors,44 The deceased were given temple names, granted a day on which to receive sacrifices, and placed within the sacrificial cycle. Xiao Si moved from being a dead-and presumably highly powerful and potentially dange rous-spirit to being an anceStOr with a defined place. In shorr, (he point of these rituals was to place me deceased in

P laCing the Ancestors: T h e Constructio n o f the Shang Pantheon T he obvious questions, then, are: What precisely are these d ivine powers, Wherein lies their capriciousness, and H ow precisely are human rituals supposed to control them!.:) A significant pottion-but by no means allof the pantheon consists of ancestral spirits. The construction of (he pantheon begins with an individual's death:·' Crackmiling on bingkn, Chu divi ning: 'n making Xiao 5i's day. let it be a :wi: Eighth month. (Hejr 11,?ut! 4 0.

My undemanding or thue iuutl haa been helped greatly by $:orah Alhn', 1M Sh.I~

ofthtT" ..dr. 41 . My argument here rouow, the inrerprnnion given by, and set of irucriprions ~ornpiled by, U Xueqin in hit 'Ping Yiuw bud ton"nu : 42. The .. me divination it found on Hr, 2),714: Htjll1,71) haa the lame divInation, bill whhoUllhe ri,

4). I am here foUowing David Keigbdey·1 imetpl"rnnion or lem ple names. Fa< I brief lumnury. see hit Thr AIICe!".J S.rifo~. pp. ))-)5. Krighdey wu re>(ling 19ainn K.. C. Clunga argumenl "lilt the temple IWJle refkcted different duuni groups wilhin lhe Slung Hnea~; see Clung', lien k:an: A Key 10 [he Hisrory of the Shulg: The evidence given hcre-
,ufficien.

46

ANTHROPOMORPHIZIN G THE S PIRITS

the: proper hierarchy of sacrifices. And it was a place determined by the living_ The entire pamheon of Shang ancestors was built up through such a proceu. By adding together the clues from me irucriptional (vidence, schol· ars have been able to work OUt the enrire anran-a! hierarchy.4S Shang Jia wu

the highest ancestor of the Shang. and Da Yi was Cheng T
Divining: ~AI for Fu Hao's dream, it is nOf Father Yi." (Heji 101 JE)

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING THB SP IRITS

47

Similarly, military campaigns would involve significant portions of the pan· theon: Divining: ,his Ipring the king will not ally with Wang Cheng to mack Xia Wei [for ifhe does,} me upper and lower [divine powerl} will nor approve. It will not be we who will be receiving me divine assistance." (Hrji 6,506) T he ancestors, there fore, appear to grow m ore powerful the longer they are dead. The generation of ancestors immediately above me living can cu rse specific individuals with sicknesses, toothaches, and nightmares, whereas the higher powers control phenomena that affect the entire Slung people, such as harvests and milir.ary campaigns. And [his hierarchy provides the context for understanding me bill ritual-me ritual discussed by both C hang and Keighdey. If Chang read the ritual as an example of shamanism, Keighdey read it as revealing a protobureaucratic sense of hierarchy. Let us look at the evidence: Ought not entertain, (Htji 1l.7516)

If such divinations reveal that the problem is indeed a curse from one of the ancestors, t hen sacrifices would be made to dispel the curse:

Crackmaking on ww ... Que divining: ·We ought not nuke the entertainment [ritualJ." (Htji 15,1511)

Craclcmaking on WUyill (day lsi. Bin divining: ~Exorcise Fu Jing to Mother Geng." (Hcji~715)

Crackmaking on yiehow, Que divining: "We ought not perform rhe entertainment {ritual}," (Hlji 15.1751)

~ ...

Divining: "Cheng will be a guest to Di: (Htji IA02. lE)

Mocher Geng exo rcise Fu Hao', tooch.~

"[We) ought not to Mother Galg aorcise."

Divining: "Da Jia will be i guest [0 Cheng." (Htp 1,401.lE)

~Ezorcise the

Divining: "Cheng will not be a gueS[ [ 0 Di: (Hrji 1,401.lE)

misforrune [0 Father Yi." (Heji 1..1514)

Crackmaking on yimllCl, Que divining: ~E)[omse Fu Hao [0 Father Vi. Cleave Iheep. olTer pig:J, and make a promissory offering of ten penned sheep." (Hcji 1.71)

All these divinations and sacrifices are aimed ae me generation immediately above the living.

Divining: "Da Jia will not be a guest ro Cheng: (Hcji 1,401 JE) Crackmaking onjillchrll (day 41J, Que divining: "Xia yi will be a guest to, 1,401 lE)

"

:

(Hrji

Divining: "Xia Yi will nor be a guest to Cheng." (Hrji l,.40a JE)

But, fo r topia like the harvest, h igher ancestors would usually be invoked. The foUowing divination begins with the h ighest ancestor, ShangJia:

Divining: "Da, , , will be 1 guest to Di." (Hry 1,401.1E)

On gsriholi divining: "We will pray for millet [sczrring} from ShangJia.~ (Hry )),1.09)

Divining: "Da Ji1 will be a guest to Di." (Hrji 1,40a JE)

Divining: ' Xia Yi . ,. 10 Oi." (Hq; 1.401. JE)

Divining: "Xia Yi will nor be a guest ro OJ." (Hry 1.401 lE)

4S. Much of the crucial work for lhil Wat done by Dong Zuobin and publilhed In his "Yinxu wen:d yibian ru." On the hierarchy iudf. ICC rhe uKful lummary in Kelglillry, Th Alltfl".! S
The bill ritual involved anc:mpu by one figure to enterain or treat another. The -figures" involved were humans, an~estors, o r Di. The crucial point, as Keighdey has argued so effectively, is t hat the figures in question arc ar-

.8

.,

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING THIl SPIRITS

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING T HE SPIRITS

ranged hierarchically: humans entertain the most recently deceased ancestors, and (he most recendy deceased ancestors entertain the still earlier ancestors, who in rum entertai n Di.-16 This hierarchy of ritual acrion reveals a hierarchy of power, since [he recently deceased ancestors were seen as weaker than the older ones, who were in rum weaker than the nature gods and Oi. As Keighdey has demonstrated: "In terms of functions, Di, the Nature Powers, and a few of the Former Lords, like Huang Yin, tended to affe(:[ the dynasty or the COUntry as a whole, influencing the weather, [he crops, and w2rnre; by contrast, . _ . the ancestors were more directly cona:med with the king's personal activities: w his illnesses, his well-being. and [he fault-free management of the riru.als. <17 And the hier.archy .also reveah .a hier.archy of pli.abiliry-.at least from the point of view of the living: the more recently deceased .ancestors were seen as more .amen.able to hum.an ritual promptings. To quote Keighdey .again: "The Sh.ang conceived of [he N.arure .and the Ancestral Powers as occupying a hier.archy of negoti.abiliry, with t he close .ancestors and .ancestresses of the p.antheon being most open to this kind of pledging. and the higher Powers, both ancestral.and n.amr.al. being less appro.ach.able in this w.ay. w4a The goal of the riru.al was thus to prompt the welker ancestors to host t he more powerful, all the way up to Oi. The ritual, then, served rwo purposes: it mainr.ained the proper hierarchy of the p.antheon, and it used the lower, more pli.able .ancestors, to mollify the higher, more powerful ,ancestors-ultimately including even Oi. Bur then who-or wh.at-is Oi~ Several scholars h.ave tried to .argue th.at Oi is the supreme anCeStOr. Robert Eno even argues th.at Oi is in fact a col49 lective name for the enrire pantheon of .ancestors. But I would .argue .ag.ainst Eno's re.ading. It is difficult to read the bin ritual inscriptions meaningfully if we interpret Oi as a collective name. But then the quesrion still sr.and..s: IfOi is a singular being. then wh.ar is he~ The evidence for .answering the question is limited. Bur it is clear that O i is more powerful than the other ancestors. H e is the most powerful of the gods .and controls the wind .and r.ains. It could be argued that O i is very much like an ancestor: as we

have al ready seen, me more dist.ant .ancestors .are more powerful. At the same time. however, he is not p.art of the sacrificial pantheon: he does not have a temple name, :and he does not have :a designated d:ay in the sacrificial cycle. Indeed, Oi never receives sacrifices :at ali. so As the most powerful god, Di seems relatively uncontrolbble by human ritual. The most reasonable hypothesis is th:at Oi was not recognized as part of the S hang ancestral line, and he was prob:ably not an ancestor :at all And this may in part explain the motiv.ation for the bin ritual. If the human ability to influence Oi direcdy is limited, humans can nonetheless artempt to infl uence the lower ancesto rs, who can influence the higher .ancestors, who can in turn influence Oi. In other words, they c.an cre.ate a hier.archical chain th:n ultim:ately includes Oi We thus find insctiptions such as:

46. Kcightley. ·Slum:mism. Dearh. and {he Ances{ors; pp. 808-14. Su aho Hu Houxuan. -Yin buci >:hong de snangdi he wangdi,' p. 89. 41. Keigluley. "The Making of {he Ancu{on: p. 9·

48. Ibid.. p. IS. 49. Eno. -Wn There a Higl\ God TJ in Shang Rcligiol1r

Crackmaking on guichou (day 50J, Zheng divining: -We will dwd! in this serclement and perform the great entertainment ritual, (for if we do,J Di will approve. - Third month. (Htji (4,l06 IE) Crackmaking on gukhou (day 50J. Zheng divining: -Di will not approve.- (Heft 14.r06 IE) To determine whether Oi .approves of the Shang's continued dwelling in a particular Krtlement, a ~gre:at entertainment rirual~ is offered. The term ~great X ritu:ar is used in Sh:ang inscriptional liter:arure to refer to a ritual encompassing the entire pantheon. The -great exorcism,w for example, includes all.ancestors, beginning with ShangJia: Crackmaking on )'ihai, Bin divining: -Make the great exorcism [scarting) from Shang Jia: (Heji 14,8(0)

It is reasonable to conclude, then, that the gre:at enteruinment riru:a.l involved the full pantheon, including the enteruining of Oi by the higher :ancestors. T hus, the w:ay to gain the support of Oi for the continued occupation of the sertlement was through rhe bin ritual: Oi could not be coerced inm :accepting the Sh:a.ng o rder through sacrifices, but the p:a.ntheon could be employed to coerce him t hrough t he bin ritual.

so. There are no inscripl ioru in which Di dearly rec~iv"-' uc ri6c~. Shima Kunio Ius at· {elllpled 10 argue due Di did in fact receive Ja,crificu. bUI his evidence is unconvincing; S<:e his I"kp bokuji k,"k,w, pp. '95-97. For a ca reful. and convincing. refutation of Shima', argument. ace Eno. -WII There I High God Ti in Slung Religion"-?p. 7-8.

,0

AN T HROPOMORP H IZING THE SP I RITS

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING T H E SPIR I TS

These artempts to use the bin ri[U:u [0 create and m~tain a proper hierarchy of non-ancestra.l powers can further be seen in the entertainment of nam re spirits such 2S the sun and the Yellow River:

that correer ritual procedure by the Shang kings would result in favors conferred by Dj," n A similar ruding of Sh;;mg sacrifice underlies Poe Muchou's understanding:

Crackmaking on ]isi {day 42]: "The king will enu:ru.in Ri (the sun). (Htji 12,181)

In the [Shang] irucriprioru one senses that the diviner addressed the deities, Of ancescon;, u if they were immcdiacdy accessible. In fact, since man believed so fi rmly char the deities :rnd ancestors actually cceended care and power to the propitiator direedy. the woc!d of Cl«ra-human powers in che conception of the Shang diviners should be seen as havinfi been either conterminous with the human world or a continuous exteruion ofit.

He will not enterrain [he sun: (Htji 32,181)

Crackmaking on ;.ins; (day 18). divining: "The king will enterrain He {the Yellow River} and offer a iiao [burnt-offering $.acrifice)."" • Crackmaking on Wlzi (day 49J. Lii divining: "The king will entertain Ri (the sun). It will not rain: (Htji 22,519) In contrast to the rrarment of D~ the king himself can directly entenain these nature powers. But, as we saw with Oi, the hi71 rirual appears to conneet the non-ancestral divinities with ancestral powers: Craclunaking on guiwri [day :wJ, Que divining: ·On [he nat jiasMlI [wy :1.1]. the king will enterrain ShangJia and Ri.~ The king prognosticared and said: "It will be an auspicious enterrainment rieual: They really were emerrained. (H~ji 1.2481£)

The purpose of the ritual was to entertain Shang Jia, the highest Shang ancestor, alongside the sun. It seems reasonable to conclude, therefore, that n:rotur:rol powers as well were being brought into and harmonized wim the ancestral powers. De:rod hUllUlns are m:rode into ancestors, and non-ancesrral powers :rore [hen brought into accord with these ancestors. And, in me c:rose of Di, the ancestorS themselves are c:rolled upon to bring Di into the pantheon.

T r:ronsforming the Spirirs~ Sactifice in the Sh:rong So what does this mean for our understanding of the bill ritual~ I would agree with Keightley th:rot Shang rirual process should not be rud as sh:romanistic. Humans do not ascend to the huvens, nor do the :roncestors descend into humans. The ancestors certainly descend to receive their sacrifices, but there is nothing shamanistic abour that. But I would not follow Keightley in reading [his as pro[o-bureaucr:rotic. And my disagreement comes down to :ro question concerning Keighdey's argument :robout sacrifices in the Shang. For Keighdey. "Shang religious pr:rocrice rested upon the do ut des ('I give, in order that thou shouldst give') belief 51. Zhongguo lhe:hui kuuqwn, Kaogu yanjiuluo, Xi,<>IWllllllndlji'lM, 1,116.

"

The ancestors, deities, and humans are on t he same pl:rone, and sacrifice allows for a proper relationship between them: "A person's relationship with the powers, moreover, can be described as do ut deJ.H~ Keighdey :rond (following Keighdey) Poo Mu-chou :rore arguing th:ror insofar as the Shang divinationa! :rond sacrificial experts saw humans :rond divinities as continuous, a simple bureaucratic operation of giving and raking was set up between them: one gives in order to receive. In making this argument, Keightley is reading China according to a sacrificial model proposed by the early theorists of s:rocrifice-Edward Tylor, Robertson Smith, and, to some extent, Henri Hubert and Marcel Mauss.~' All these theorists read s:rocrifice as a gift from human to god. And Weber lies in this tradition as welL Weber ruds the S6 sacrificial do ut des as :ro rationalization of magic -just as he reads the thisworldly orientation of later Chinese religion. In fact, however. Hubert and Mauss's argument COntains more than just :ro discussion of sacrifice as a gift:. Indeed, as many have argued,S7 the definitions of sacrifice as a gift th:rot still :roppea.r in the work are the weakest parts of the argument. Other partS of Hubert and M:rouss's analysis are far more powerful and m:roy prove more helpful for analyzing Shang sacrificial practices than the gift: model The main idea behind theif :rorgument is th:rot sacrifice is a trans formative act. They read the act as involving a series of trans-

p. Keighdey, "The Rdigiou, Commitment; pp.114- LS.

Poo, 1~ Starch oj Pmo",,1 W'!f"r~, p. a8 . H. Ibid. S5. Tylor, Primiri •• Cul/urc. WiIlWn Robemon Smith, Ltrru ... 0" tho Rrfiro" of rlx&mir<J; Huben and Maw" $a{rifu•. S6. Weber, &0"0"",,../ Soti.,], r: 414. " . See, in pmieubr, rhe excellenr diKwlion by Vakri, Ki",{Ihip~"'/ Sacn'fiu, pp. 64-66. 5).

ANTHR.OPOMOR.PHIZIN G THB SP IRI TS

ANTHROPOMORPHIZ I NG T H E SPIR IT S

formanons of sacralization and dcsacralizaoon between the sacrifier.Y the victim. and the divine powers involved. Thus. for example. Hubert and Mauss argue that the sacrificial victim is sacralized by the process. as. thereS9 fore. is the sacrifier. Sacrifices throughout the world are then read as a series of permutations of this model; Huben and Mauss focus in panicular on which transformations are emphasi%ed and what function these transformations have in the society under discussion. O f particular interest to our current concerns is their description of one aspect of the Vedic soma sacrifice: ""Thus not only is it in sacrifice that some gods are born. it is by S2crifice that all sustain their existence. So it has ended by appearing as their essence. their origin. and their creator...60 In other words. gods as well as the sacrifier can be mnsformed by sacrifices. And. in fact. Keighdey's argument concerning the "making of ancestors" points precisely to this trans formative norion of sacrifice rather than to the bureaucratic do lit dtJ fnmework within which both he and Poo Mu-chou attempt to interpret Shang sacrificial action. The Shang sacrificers were not assuming that human and divine powers were continuous or chat the giving of a gift would result in benefits from the gods. They were rather transforming spirits into figures who would operate within a humanly defined hierarchy. In other words. sacrifice did not ren upon the "belief" that correct ritual procedures would result in f.IVOrs. Rather. it rested on the attempt to (note a system in which this would be the case. Thus. when dead beings are given a temple name and placed within the sacrificial hierarchy. they are being formed intO ancestors who will. the living hope, act on their behalf. And the bin ritual not only maintains this hierarchy but also (again, it is hoped) brings Oi into it as well And all these divine powers are then called on to act on behalf of the living. Perhaps, then. instead of representing a bureaucratic mentality. the ritual involved an attempt to create hierarchy. Hierarchy was not an assumption; it was a goal. I would argue that the guiding assumption behind Shang sacrificial action is that if left to their own devices. the spirits (Oi. nature spirits. and deceased humans) do not act in the best interests of humans. Indeed. the

assumption seemed to be (hat spirits were capricious and quire possibly malicious. And they were more powerful than humans: mey control natural phenomena, and they have the ability to send disasters. Accordingly, hwn:.ms had to, within the limits of their powers, use rituals to place rhese spirits in a hierarchical system. in which (it was hoped) the spirits would furthe r the intercsts of the living. The Shang ancestral cult represented an attempt to forge nature spiriu .and the ghosts of deceased humans into a single, unified system. The deceased humans would become ancestral spirirs. defined by their roles in a hierarchy. and both nature spirits and non related yet nonetheless powerfu l deceased humans would be placed in this hienrchy as well. Moreover. these ancestral spirits would themselves serve to keep the non-ancestral spirits in place. And. from the evidence in the divinatory material. it is clear thar these effons often fililed. Even with the sacrificial system in place, the spirits frequently, at whim. created problems for the living. and the living then had to divine to determine what additional sacrifices would mollify the spirit in question. Spirits. in shorr, were more powerful than mere human rituals, and Oi and the other (natural and ancestral) spirits would frequently act contrary to the interests of humans. Thus, humans were neither collaborating with the spirits nor assuming that their ri tuals would work. Instead, they were attempting. within their limited powers, to use rituals to cre.ate an orde red, helpfuJ pantheon of spirirs. My fuji argument. then, is thar adopting Kcightley's insight about "making ancestors" leads to a questioning of Keightley's own W eberian framework. If correct, this would mean that the re was no assumption of a harmonious collaboration of man and spirit in the late Shang. The need to make spirits of the deceased into ancestors and to bring nature deiries and O i itself into that pantheon shows. among other things, a belief that spirits are not inherently inclined to act on behalf of the living. And the divinational record reveals a belief that [he ritual system often did not work anyway. This reading of me inscriptions implies that a this-worldly optimism did not prevail in the Sh:mg and mat humam and spirits were not seen as inhcrenrly connected. O n me contrary: the specific concern of the Shang cult was, in a ~nse. to anthropomorphiu the spirit world: to make the deceased into proper ancestors and to have the :mcestors guide the nalUre spirits and Oi. The reigning assum prion. then. would appear to be that the relations between humans and spirirs were, without this ritual action, agonistic and po_

Sl. The: "'~rilKr : according [ 0 [he Hubm / Maw.s modd. it the ·,ubject to whom !Ix bc;llefn, of Perifke ,h ... , ac:CfUe. o. who undergoes i.. due.." (Hilbert and Ma ... n, 5.aaiflc•• p.IO). 59. Ibid.• pp. '9-4~· &a. Ibid., pp. ~l -~'.

"

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING THIi SPIR ITS

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING THB SP I RITS

tential.ly dangerous; the goal W2S thus to domestic:ne the sprits and thereby render them conrrollable.

2S the potenrial adversary of the king and the state:'· The porentially arbitrary aspects of divinity in the Shang are rhus replaced by an inherent linkage in the Zhou.. Similarly, Lester James Bilsky, in his survey of early Chinese religion, has argued [har, in the early Western Z hou: "The gods and spirits were thought of as immortal beings who invariably acted according to the ideals of perfection and who, thus, inhabited a world of ideal perfec· 64 tion: Both Eno and Bilsky, in other words, find in the Westem Zhou a linkage between humanity and divinity comparable to that which 1<. C Chang and others have found in rhe Shang, David Pankenier, in what is perhaps the most f.ucinacing of recent attempts to discuss the Shang-Zhou transition, provides an account thac builds on [he work of many of the scholars discussed above. Pankenier's stated goal in me essay is to provide "an account of me ancient Chinese politico-religious imagination according to which macrocosmic/ microcosmic cOlTespondences legitimated me social orde r.~6S Pankenier sccs the Shangl Zhou transition as a crucial moment in the development of this cosmologi· cal view. To make this argument, Pankenier clainu char the Shang did nol think according to such a cosmology. To the contn.ry, the late Shang-the period covered in the oracle·bone materials-reveals a lack of inreresr in cosmology and astrology:

A Moral Cosmos~ The Z hou Conquest and the Mandate ofHcaven In the mid·e1eventh century lie, the Shang fell to the Zhou armies led by King Wu. This would become one of [he defining moments in early Chinese history. But W2S it just a military victory of one state over ~other, or did it represent a fundamental change in the perceived relations between humans and spirits in early C hina! Scholars who emph2Size [hac [he Shang was foundational for luer Chinese culture argue, nor surprisingly, againn a fundamental break. (Both Chang and Whe"dey, for example, quote from Zhou texts in discussing Shang materials.) Bu[ several scholars have cried to argue, on the contn.ry, that the Zhou conquest does indeed represent a rupture. Indeed, there is a dear pattern: scholars who see a substantial break [end to find in the Westem Zhou the very things that Whudey, Chang. Ching. and Keighcley tried (in my opinion unsuccessfully) to find in the Shang: a belief in an inherent and harmonious link between divine powers and humanity. For example, Eno recendy described the ShanglZhou traJUition in the following terms: -Wherca5 the Shang king had been merely chief pricst to the high gods, the Mandate of Heaven theory made the Zhou king Tian's [Heaven's] execuror on earch.'1 Tian and the king were now virtually indistinguishable. ~62 In a footnote to this starement, Eno further remarlo: 'This had not been the case with the Shang. There arc inscriptions that portn.y the Shang high god Di 61. Huven was [i>c high god of tt,., Zhou, jwt 1.1 Di "1.1 d", high god of [i>c Shang. Howara-. 1.1 we s.IWI s«, It,., Zhou proemed Hu~n and Oi 1.1 tt,., same deity and wed lhoe twO [emu

imerchangubly.

Shim> Kunio (10k? YMji k,.,l,]li, pp. 114-36) and, fotlowing him, Robert Eno (1M 0.". foe;,," e ''''lto" ojH"'II(". pp. (8)-36) have rried 10 argue ,ha, Huvcn doet in fan appear in lhe Slung inscriptions, reproemed by tt,., graph ~'"' T.I find the argument unperJUUivc. The word oiiNllimply rJen 10 lhe oi'"l day, Ul
"

The window on the world of the Shang provided by the oracle bone ilUcripriotU, fonnulaic and limited in scope though they are, secnu skewed by the particular pre' occupations of late Shang divinarory theology. Cosmology and astrology figure al· most incidentally, the natu ral powen finally not at all, in a magico.rdigioUll practice largdy devoted during the final decades of the dynasty to the rourine observances of the anccstral cult. (po 17... )

In contrast, Pankenier argues, the Zhou developed a view bued on the cosmologicallinking of the king with Heaven. When PUt in these terms, the argument seems directly based on the rationalization models discussed in the Introduction-the arguments, found in works from Weber to chose commined to a general-religion to philosophf framework. for a gradU
at

n..

6). Ibid., p. lIa"~5.

n..

Bilaky, St~1t R.!igi~" oj }.",i,"1 0.; .... I: 6l. 65. Pankenier. it,., COlmo-Polidcai Background ofHu~n·. Mandate." p. 11a (hereinafter d Ied In tM tUI). 64.

SO

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING THE SPIR IT S

ANTHROPOMORP HI ZING THB SPIRITS

rOltional one. Indeed, Pankenier
In shorr, Pankenier sides with Wheatley in arguing for a deep strain of cos' mologjcal thinking direcdy :wociated with the rise of the state. The Shang was simply m aberration.

transition in precisely these terms: ~My portrayal of the emergent contrast between late Shang and early Zhou religious dispositions is informed by Clifford Geeru's el.aOOr.uion (following Max Weber) of m e distinction between 'traditional' and 'rationalized' religions~ (p. l73nI03).

However, Pankenier's overill argument in fact is much closer to those of figures like Wheatley. Pankenier wishes to :u-gue th:u a form of correlative cosmology, based in astrology, formed in China in the second millennium Be with the emergence of the state. Indeed, he qUOtes and supports Wheatley's argument on this point (p. 145). Starting well before the Shang. Pankenier argues, kingship was understood as an institution mat mainr.ained the proper correl:uion berween the human and natural realms: "The ability to comprehend the celestial motions and to sustain a reciprocal conformity be· rween their regular variations and human lcrivity, thlt is, the discernment necesslry to 'plrrern oneself on Helven: WlS l fund.;unenral qualification of kingship~ (p. 146). Plnkenier's full argument, therefore, is thlt the lack of cosmologjcal and astrological thinking distinguishes the late Shang not only from its succes· SOtS but also from irs predecessors: ~The late Shang mly have represented a significlnr deputure from the norm in significmt respectS~ (p. 17S). The theologjcOll shift nom the Shang to the Zhou was thus not a unilinear evolu· tion from a magical to a rltional woddview; rather, the Z hou reverted to a more archaic notion of cosmology: With regud to the supernatural sanction underpinning the universal kingship the key shift is mlrked by a deemphasis oflegirimacy based on the principle of contigu. ity, thar is, membership in the royal lineage, toward a focus on legitimu:y premised on emulating Heaven as the paradigm of order and harmony, an ethos inspired by an archaic, fi.mdamenrally metaphorical idea about the congruence obtaining be· tween the supernatural and temporal realms. (PP.I73-74) Even the ethical aspectS of Zhou thought are simply a more articwated as· pect of an earlier cosmology: By attributing human·like personality to Heaven, and by vigorously reviving the conception of phenomenal nature as an index of Heaven's activity, the Zhou Chi· nae inevitably rdmbued nature wirh an ethical quality. This feeling for the elhical dimension coma most strongly 10 the fore in rhe early Zhou lextS, but it was by no meaN a Zhou innovation. (p.170)

"

In view of the evidence of a fundamemal consistency between late Zhou cosmologi' cal conceptiON and their second millennium B.C. antecedents, the Zhou claim to have re-established the continuity of a cosmo' political tr:u!ition that took its cues from Heaven and the natural order now appears will founded. (p.176) The Zhou chus represents the consolidation of an earlier archaic tradition resting on the harmony of man and H eaven. And this tradition accounts for the optimistic, humanistic disposition of Chinese thought: ~By raking mlrrers into their own hands, so to speak, a nmdamenta.lly opdmisric, human-centered disposition began co evolve, bur· dened though it was by a heavy responsibility to maintain rirual regularity~ (p. ISS). Pankenier thus finds in the Western Zhou, as well as earlier in the Chinese Bronze Age, the same form of this-worldly optimism chat Weber defined as characterizing Chinese cwrore in general. But are these scholars right~ Are the views of the Western Zhou that dif· ferent from those of the Shang~ Did the Zhou inrroduce l fundamenta.lly different (or, in the case of Pankenier, restore a more primordial) w.ay of conceptualizing the relations of humlns, spirits, and the cosmos thm that which existed in the Shang~ More pointedly, is it true [hat such a correlation of the wills of H eaven, the ancestors, md the king was assumed to exist in the early and middle Western Z hou-along with m attendant this.worldly optimism? The answer to these questions is, in my opinion, no. But before spelling OUt my own view, let me provide some of the evidence behind the argument for a fundamental break in religious beliefs between the Shang and Zhou. A few years afte r the conquest, the Duke of Shao, one of King Wu's brothers, purportedly gave as the reason for the Shang's failure that ~they did not respect their power (ae) and thereupon prematurely lost meir man· date.~66 T he Zhou then received the mmdate to rule instead. A fuller discussion of what this mandate entailed can be seen in the in· scription on the Maogong aing:

66. "Sluo gao; Shd"FU, IS.63. My fr~Rslafions have been aided by K>.rlgrm, 'Ttu: Book ofDocumenu; p. 49; and Nivilon, "An imerprecalioR of the 'Shao po,'" p.•8•.

,8

ANTHROPOMORPHIZ I NG THB SPIIt.JTS

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING THE SPlIltTS

The king laid to the effect: "Father Yin, as for grearly illustrious Wen and Wu, au-

The founding of the city is thus presented as .a continwtion of the actions of Oi (or He.aven), and it serves to center the rulm. ConcraS{ mis with the inscriptionaJ material discussed .above concerning the malOng of settlements. There, the concern was the human .appropriation of land conrralled by Di. .and the king was .anempting to use u cri6ces:and divin.ation to determine OJ's will. Here, Oi is the prime mover, directing the king to sc:tde .a new city. Indeed, the entire relationship berween ancestors .and descendants that prev.ailed in the late Slung .appe.ars to h.ave been turned upside down. In· ste.ad ofh.aving me kings determine the ancestors, living kings.are &equendy presented in Western Zhou bronze inscriptio ns as simply foUowing the models .and p.aradigms of the anceston. As King Kang states in the Do Yu

gUst Heaven was extcruivdy satisfied with their virtue, and made us. the rulers of Zhou. a countcrpart [of hinudf). [We] gready rcsponded to and received the great mmrhtc, and led md embraced the bordedanch which werc not coming [ 0 court. N one was nO{ opened by Wen', and WU'J brilliant glory. It wu Heaven that directed and gathered their rrunW.te. and it was the former officers who yidded to and as-

listed their roIen. ro~ing and laboring for the greal mandue. And chen august Heaven tirdu,[y Watched oyer and protected us, the rulers of the Zhou, and greatly Ifrc:ngrhened the ITUndatc of which [he former kings were the counrcrpan:..67

Heaven granted the mand:irc to the Zhou rulers Wen

~d

Wu, and Wen

and Wu then served as the counterpart ofHe;vcn on arrh. At first glance, this appears to be quire different from the Shang material. Throughout the Shang mefS there is a strong notion that the world has a proper pattern. However, the evidence dearly reveals this pattern to have bun given by humans to the spirits, not the other way around: living humans, through their ritu.a1s and particularly through their sacrificial system. place spirits into a hierarchy and thereby ane mpt to obtain an order favorable to themselves. Spirits do not give this pattern to humans; nor leEr (0 their own devices, would the spirits observe such a hier.archy. And, in fact, even with the full ucri6cial system in piKe, spirits are still quite c.apricious: the rituals do not alw.ays work. Wh.at appears different about the notion of.a mand.ate is thn it explicitly comes from He.aven, :md Heaven's suppon is bued on the virtUes of the rulers in question rather than on their rirwl :actions. Humans do nO( determine the an cestors; rather, they follow He.aven :and.are rewarded fo r doing so and punished for not doing so. Thus, for example, the decision by King Cheng. Wu's son and successor, to found the city of Luoyang is presented in sever.al Western Zhou texts as simply the fulfillment of the wishes of Oi. The ~Sh.ao gao· chapter of me Shdn~u quotes the Grand Protector as making precisely this poinr. The king should come and continue the [work) of the Oi on high, and himself serve in the center of the land.1Y 67. Shirwwa, Killbt. .. ts~m..kw, 10.1'1:6)7. All bron~ inKripcionl are referenced in (ennl of (hit W
"

ding: Now it is that I approach the modd and receive from King Wen upright power. Like King Wen', commanding the tWO or three offid als, now it is that r command you, Yu, to :usist Rang in respectfully supporting the continuance of the power, (Sh (1.61:647)

King Kang presenu himself.as following the model of King Wen and receiv· ing the latter's power. Even Kang's act of giving commands is posed .as fol· lowing in the mold of King Wen. Simil.ariy, the king comm.ands Yu to use the same approach of modeling himself on a great .ancestor. The king said: "Ah. r command you, Yu. to modd yoursdf on your inheritance from grandhthcr Nangong.~ Instead of the living making me deceased into proper ancesron, the descendanu .are here presented .as following the deceased. And all .are pan of Heaven's larger m:and.ace. We find the following o n the Lu So Dong gui, .a vU$t1 &om the reign of King Mu: It was the king's first month, with the dlt .. :I[ PcP" [day a1). the king said to the effect: "Lu So Dong. in planning. suning from your grandhther :lnd father, {your family) huhdped , in l.aboring for the Zhou state and hdped in opening up the four quarrer,. May it be exten.ive, Huven'. mandate. In what you have undert:aken, you have not failed.· (Sh 17.9:1.::1.11)

'0

ANTHROPOMOIlPHIZING THE SPIRITS

Pose-conquest military enduvors were also presented:u;t carrying out of Heaven's mancUrc. For example, in the Ban gui, King Mu is presented as ordering (he Duke of Mao to .:m2ck che e2Stcrn states. After che ;track. the Duke is recorded as saying:

The Duke (of Mao) announced his service to above: 1r is thar the people did nor come (ro (Dun). InM nomu they darkcned?O Heaven', fI'W1dare: (Sh IS.79:'.) War is thus presented as 1 maintenance of che mmd..au: of Heaven. JUSt as the initial conquest was presented as 2 fulfillment of che ffiand.Ut. Throughout these inscriptions and poems, then, we sec a recurring theme: Heaven (or Oi) is the director. and the Zhou follow his divine pl:!.n. ~ch successive king is posed as adhering (0 che mood of his predecessors, and each acr of conquest, consolid,uion, and domestication is presented as simply a continuation of the ancestors' work. Moreoller, the king's aides are presented as simply serving the royal house in its work. a service accomplished by modeling themseilles on rheir forebears. The lilling. in such rheroric, do nothing but respect the model of rhe ancestors. Unlike the potentially antagonistic relationship of man and dillinity in the Shang. rhen. the Western Zhou writings seem to pose Heallen as acting with the king.

But does the Western Zhou represent a fimdamenul break from the Shang in terms of the perceilled relations berween humans and spiritS! I think not. The problem here is that we must be careful to conrexrua1iu statemenrs and understand why they were written. Abolle all, we must avoid the tempn.rion co take statementS at face value and read them as common beliefs or assumpt"iolU of the time. In what follows I will argue that perhaps Eno, Bilsky. and Pankenier are jumping too quickly from statemenrs made in a particular contexr to claims about an overall belief system of the time. More specifically. the lIiew that there exisred a belief in the early Western Zhou of the identity of the king and Heallen seems to me suspect.

69· Guo Moruo ( Li,,,t·ZI>o~ p·"wtll(i .lui (~r~ IwOJhi, p. 10b) rudi Ihi. , .; :t as the u ' damalory t.; ijl. Ttlllpting though ,uch a ruding may be, r am nOllUn: il ia jUllifi:lbk. I have inllt>.d read it aJ t.; t£, al iI common in WUlrrn Zhou bron~ iriKriptionl. 10. Following Guo Moruo (Ibid.) In reading ,i~., mti~.

a,

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING TH B SPIRITS

"

Pacifying the Spirits: Western Zhou Sacrificial Practice The notion of a mandate is linked wirh the idea of proper sacrifices. In the "Duo fang" chapter of the sn...Plgs"u, the Duke ofZhou is reponed to have said: "It was your last king of Shang who took pleasure in his ease, scorned his governance. and did not keep the sacrifices pure. Heaven thus sent down timely disasters." Heaven then rurned to rhe Zhou: "It was our Zhou king who efficaciously upheld the people, was able to util.i.u his power (at), and direct the spiritS and Heallen. Heaven then instructed us to utilize his favor. He examined and galle us the mandate of Yin ro administer your numerous regiolU ...:11 Of note here is me fact: rhat one of the fundamental distinctions drawn berween {he cwo rulers is an ability to utilize sacrifices properly. The last Shang king failed to do so, and Heaven thus sent down disasters. In contrast, the Zhou king was able to direct [he spirirs and Helven properly, lnd he thus won rhe mandlte. But whlt does it mean to use sacrifices properly? The Tilnwlnggui,71 which dares to the reign of King Wu, is inscribed: The gready iIIusrrious decened father King Wrn serves and pienes 7J the Oi on high. (Sh 1.1:1) The late King Wen, Wu's fiuher, is presented as serving and pleasing Oi. Here again. the ancestors are expected [0 do what they can ro keep rhe highest power, Oi, working on behalf of the living. Although the rirw.] involved here is different from those discussed above. the concerns are quite similar. The inscription in the bronze vessel was presumably intended for the ancestors-in this case King Wen-who would rhus read me inscription after descending to consume the sacrifices offered in the vesseL74 The inscription. therefore, is nor so much a statement of faCt as an exhortation to Wen to serve Oi: "May the greatly illustrious deceased father King Wen serve and please the Oi on high!"

71. "Ouofang." SJ,.,,,p,,,, 17.sb. 6a. My lranslalion"'" been aid~ by Karlgren. ""The Soo[.; of Documems: pp. 64-6S. n. Also known u the Oa Feng",i. 1). Guo Moruo rms this a Iypr of suriflCr th.u iI being offtr~ to Oi (u.. "g'ZIxo~ Ji"""'II(; Ju; I~rw kGo,j,;. p. lb.) BUI since lhrre is no,~ T following Ihe word, il _tnl difficult 10 rr>.d OJ al the indirect objecl of a sacrifite verb. J [hl1$ read Ihe word in ilt ulwl meaning. 14. For an exlremely hrlpfUI analYlii of meaninr of bron~ imcriptions, _ Falkenhaulrn. "hmu in Wrlttrn Zhou SlUdil:l." See aha idem, S~Jpt..Jtd M~Jic.

as.,

6,

6,

ANTHIlOPOMORPHIZING THB SP IIlITS

ANTHROPOMOP.PHIZING THB SP IRI TS

This concern with coaxing or even controlling the: ancestors appears fre quently in bronze: inscriptions. For example. in [he 50 Dong gu;, a vessel from the: middle Western Zhou:

su~de him to accept the new order. These are the actions of a king who KU

fl.] Bo Dong. for the first rime will make a treasure: for the: western Fat"c. It is 10 be wed to pacify (Jui

*:

~) the spirits.

and to embrace and call OUI to [he earlier, cultured men, who gnsp virt1.lc and uphold generosity. It is to pur for len thousand yean to have sons' sons and grandson. gnmuolU ec:«n.ally [reas!,lfC it. (Sh 17.S!1:w,) The explicit statement that the vessel was made for usc in p2cifying [he: spiro its through sacrifices, like t he oracular materia.! discussed in the preceding sections, impliu a belief [hat the mentors were 01.[ lusr potentially nor suppordl/c. But if. in the: Tianwang gui, it is Wen who serves and pleases Oi, what happened to the Shang anccstors! How, in [he afcc:nnarh of the conquest. were the Sh~ng ~ncestors repl~ced by the Zhou in serving the Di! HinD em be found in the ·Shifu· ch~prer of rhe YiWlluJhu. ~ chapter rhat may indeed date to the early Western Zhou.7'J We are told that after conquering the Shang. King Wu declared: "In declaration to rhe earth altar. (Wu] said: 'It is I. the young one. who p~cifies (my] culrured. deceued nther. M~y it reach to (me]. the young one,'·76 The descendant. King Wu, claims to ~city (sui) his deceued nther. King Wen, and hopes thac this will result in benefits for himself. The term Jui is the same one used in me Bo Dong pi to describe the p~cific~tion of the spirits. The declaration reveals thac Wu is not at all certain of his deceased father's support, King Wu's actions in the afterm~rh of the conquest 2fe telling: ·On wud,tn (day s], rhe king then performed an exorcism, made an inspection. and gave a commemorative sacrifice to King Wen. On rhis day. the king es71 cablished the government.· All these actions. aken immedi;udy mer the conquest and immediately before the establishment of the Zhou state, appear to be 2CD of consolidation. aimed at driving away malevolent forces ~nd settling the new order. The exorcism. as discussed above, serves to drive spirits away from me human ualm-presum~bly. in mis case, the spirits are the Shang ~ncestors. Sacrifices are then given to Wen-presumably to per-

7'. Su Shaughmllr. "'New' Evidell« ollihe Zhou COnquclI," pp. 60-66. 76. "Shifu," Yidx>~m~ ••.Iu-b. n.lbid.• • .la:I.

himself in a position similar to that implied by the Of2cular inscriptions discussed above: he is acting in ways th:a.t he is not convinced will be supported by me divine powers and hence perfonns ritwl ;acu aimed at coercing their acceptance. Another of the actions aken by Wu after the conquest. the beheading of me Shang masters of cawdroru," is ~rticuLarly intriguing. Bronze vessels were used to offer sacrifices to the ancestors and thus to pacify them and maincain their support. C~u1drons in parricw2f were :associ;ated with such nooons.79 The beheoading of the Shang cauldron mmrs can be undersrood :as symbolizing me end of the Shang means of determining me will of the divine powers. And rhe sacrifice: of rhe last Shang king makes the rransfer complete. The chapter records another announcement by Wu:

[Wu) allllounced in [he Zhou temple. soaying: "Blelier. I h;ave heard. [mr] culturcd. ckcc:ued fathcr cultiv;atc:d. hinudf on thc stmdarru of thc mcn of Shang. With [hc dismembercd body ofZhou Irhc Ian Shmg king). I anllounce (the change in rulership) ro Huvcn ;alld to IHou] Ji ...ICI The announcement is direcred both to He;aven (the high god) and to H ou Ji (the ancestor of the Zhou people). King Wu acknowledges th;at the Shang formerly held the rulership and th;at King Wen modeled himself on the Shang. By sacrificing me Shang king and behe;ading the Shang m:asrers of cauldrons. Wu ends [he .ucrificial system [0 the Shang ancestors. The claim is thar now the Zhou,. nor rhe Shang. will be rhe ones to serve Heaven. In the aftermath of the conquest. it is King Wen who is called on to serve and please Di and thereby bring order ro the reoalm. We rhus find in the Shi-

jingo Mao h3S: King Wm is ;above. How glorious hc u in Heaven. , • . Ibid .. . ."b. 19. IUlc....1n1 here is 1m (r.llufer of ,fM, Yin king, cauldrollJ 10 Wu. also recorded in lhe YiVIowmw (•. la:I). Later lext. prumt such rransfen~. a Itanoiard occurrelKe during a legitimalt change of d)'llallic:s. See. t.g.. the z..cV>wall. Huan. KCond year. in which ,fM, Shang arc reponed 10 have lransftrred nine cauldron. 10 the Zhou. The Shift. "Qinshihuang bellji: record. Ihe failure of 1fM, Bm emperor to get rhe cauldrons from lhe Zhou. a bilute tmderllood to .ignif)t the iIlegitirnlcy of dIe QUI dynuty. 10. "ShiIu.; yjdx>~mw .•.111.1.

ANTHROPOMORPH I ZING THE SPIRITS

"

Although Zhou is ;l\1 old state. Its mandate is new. Are the mIers ofZhou not illUSlriOUS, Was rhe mandate ofDi not timdr~

King Wen ascenth and descends. Residing to the right and left of Oi. Much is said in chese few lines. The Zhou is an old Statt., but only with King Wen did Di grant it rhe mandate to rule. Thus. it is Wen who resides with

Di, descending to the hum;m realm to receive sacrifices and ascending to the heavens to serve D i and maint:1in his support for the Zhou. Wen thus serves the same function as the Shang ancestors had earlier. These ritual exhortations to ancestors continue throughout the dynasty. But what about the descendants? The inscription on the Tianwang gui condudes:

King Wen looks down from above. The gready illustrious king [WuJ makes the inspection, the greatly majestic king [Wul becomes the successor. (Sh 1.1:1)

Here we see another side of the equation: the living, in this case King Wu, attempts to become a proper successor to the ancestor. The deceased Wen is presented as watching h is descendant from above, and Wu claims legitimacy because of his abiliry to inspect Wen and serve as his successor. The relationship between them, therefore, is bi-ditectional: the living work to make the deceased into proper ancestors, who will wotk [0 maintain O i's favor for the living. But, as the deceased are made into proper :mces[Ors, the

AN T HROPOMORP H IZING THE SPIRITS

"

may [they] frequendy be in [he COUrt of the Di on High, ascending and descending. continuously enoompassing the august [DiJ on High's great and generous mandate, thereby commanding and protecting our family, my position, and Hu's person. The p resentation is similar to that seen in the earlier vessels, except th;L.t the ;L.ncestralline is now older. King Li h;L.s ordered the vessel for s;L.crifices to his deceased father ;L.nd gr;L.ndfather, whom he thereby hopes to Hm~e rranquil and compliant." The father and grandfather, rende red compli;L.nr t h rough s;L.crifices, are exhorted to approach the "former cultured men" -;L. reference to the founders of t he dynasty, presumably Kings Wen and Wu. T he latter in rum arc called on to ascend and descend between {he human realm and the court of O i, preserving Oi's mandate for the Zhou ;L.nd thus protecting the living king's posicion. T he inscription closes w ith the King's exhortation th;L.t he be able to continue his sacrifices and thus g.in long life and a continuing mandate from Oi: M~y

[I), Hu, for cen thousand years greatly bring to realization

my many sacrifices, thereby sedcing long life and enr[eating an eternal mandate co govern in posicion and act as the stem bdow. The text is a pr;L.yer to the king's ;L.ncestors to remain with Oi in order to

living promise to make themselves intO proper descendants. T hese themes pervade the Western Zhou bronze inscriptional material.

protect the king's position. The repeated claim throughout these poems and b ronze inscriptions is t h;L.t the d eceased ·must be made into proper ;L.ncestors who will then convince Oi to maintain support for (he Zhou roy:.a.lline. The living represent themselves as proper descendants to these proper ;L.ncesIOrs. The living, in

A further example is an extremely late vesseL the Hu gui, which was comS missioned by King Li. ! The vessel was cast in the twelfth, and possibly last, year of Li's reign before his forced exile:

other words, will follow [he ancestors, but only after the deceased have in f;L.ct been m;L.de into p roper anceSIOrs. The bronze inscriptions and the poems from at [east the ·Zhouson{ sec-

[IJ, Hu [King LiJ, make chis great sacrificial treasured gui tureen, with which to make tranquil and compliant my august cultured and valorous grandfather and deceased father; may [they] go to the former cultured men, 81. Pubfuhed in Luo Xi~h~ng. ·Shuru:i Fufeng raxian Xi·Zhou Liwang Hu gui." AI. though I dingr« in a few lp«iflC poilltl, my tranlLation of the uIJCrifMion geoerally rollowl that givell in Shaughneuy, Sowrw ofWtl!tr~ Zhow Hil!O'Y, pp. 111- 1:1·

tion of the Shijing m;L.y rhus have been written from ;L. perspective nor unlike rh;L.t seen in the Sh ang oracle inscriptions, a perspective, n;L.mely, of living h umans attempting to coerce the divine powers to grant aid or, ;L.t lease, not to send down disasters. Statements in these works th;L.t the descendants are simply following the enmple of the ;L.ncestors, who in rum were simply following t he example of Heaven, should perh;L.ps not be taken purely at face value, Instud of reflecting ;L.n assumption that descendants should simply follow t heir ancestors, such statements more likely arose as ;L.n attempt by

"

"

ANTHR O POMOR,PHIZIN O THS SP IRITS

ANTHROPO M OIlPHtZ IN G THB S PIRITS

me desccn
But note King Cheng's st2tement. He qUOtes his huher. after the con· quest, as h:lVing announced t o Heaven d u:t he will settle the central territory to rule the people. This is an announcement aJong the lines o f those seen in oracle·bone inscriptions: a statement of one's intentio ns to the divine powers, in this case Heaven, in order to request approval This would hardly seem necessary ifWu was simply following Heaven's plan. In t hese lines, the feeling is not dissimilar to thu d iscussed 2bove in rela· tion to the late Shang: a potenrially an tagonistic relationship seems to hold between the king and the divine powers, and the king has to coax and influ· ence those powers into accepting h is work. Contrary to Wheatley's 2tcempt to read such claims of centering as implying a correlative mode o f thought, [he notio n here seems, rather, to involve an attempt by the king to stake out a political claim: he is announcing to Heaven h is intention of est2blishing a cemer and is hoping thereby to pin Heaven's support. The assumption is not of correlativity but o f po[emi.ai an tagonism. Indeed, r think we can go even further. Note again thar it is King C heng who is making this announcement and thar the inscription beg2n with a ref· erence [ 0 King C heng's receiving abundant blessings from his father (King Wu) in H eaven, King Cheng'S concern here is to mainrun the support o f h is father, who is in Heaven and, C heng hopes, maintaining H eaven's support. The point. then, is to emphasize to the ancesto r Wu that it was in fact Wu 's idea t o establish Luo as the new politic.al center. King C heng thereby hopes to m2intain the support of Wu, who in tum will work to maint2in Heaven's support. The concerns h ere arc rhus quite comparable to rhose found in the Shang. Heaven (or Oi) is the powerful ~gent, but H eaven is relatively u nresponsive to the rituals of t he living. The living thus strive to receive the support of the ancestors, who 2re in rum c.alled o n to influence H eaven. The living nuy present themselves as following Heaven and the 2nCestors, but such 2 pruentarion is part of a larger go.al of influ encing first the ancestors and, through them, Heaven itself. to support the wishes of the living. Overall, Western Zhou hymns and inscriptions were based on b uilding a proper ancestral pantheon thar would then work on behalf of the living to maintain O i's (or Heaven's) support. The ancestors were c.alled o n to descend to the human re.alm, receive sacrifices as well as rirua.l exhortations, and then ascend to the realm ofOi to serve him and m2intain d ivine support for the Z hou line. The culric practices are directly comparable to those of

me

think they have foUowcd the ancesrors but that the descc:nd.a.nts have acted o n their own ;md then claimed th:n in so d oing they were: simply following the ancestors. Their goa.! would be ( 0 win the ancestors' support. Even t he ancestor, chen, must be urged [0 become linked with H elven. And the descendants do follow the ancestors, but only when t he ancestors have bun made into proper ancestors. There was no more of :m assumprion concern· ing harmony in the Western Z hou than there was in the Shang. A Statement, quoted above, in the ~Shao gao~ ch2prer of the Sha",SJ/'u, concerns the fou nding of Luoyang: Ibe king should come and continue the (wo rk) of the Oi on high, and himself serve in t he center of the land . ..t2 The st2tement, 2mibuted to the Gr.lnd Protector, cle.trly presents the founding of the city as t he king continuing t he work of the Oi. But the He ZUII,II aves· sel inscribed in the fifth year of King Cheng's reign, characterizes this act in 2 different way: h was the rime when the Icing (Cheng] firu moved and settled at Chengzhou. H e once agai n received King Wu's abundant blessingz from Heaven. It Wall the fourth month, bingn (day l)J. T he king made a statement [ 0 [he young men or the lineage in the great hall. uying: 1!arlier you r wher, [he duke of the dan, Wall able [0 xcompany King Wen. And then King Wm received this [great nundateJ.'" It was when King Wu had conquered the great city Shang that he then, in COUrt, announced [0 Heaven, saying: 1 will settle this central territory, and from it rule the peo ple:" (Sh 48.[:(71) King C heng is presenting himself as fulfilling the pbns of his f.uher, King Wu, who is sending blessings from He2ven above.

h . "Shao gao: Sh4np.., IS.s.a. '). For a IUllcr diJawiorl of the. He tn, sec my 1M Amho'""I(IIC( o/ONIiM, pp. )) -)4. a,..Two grapm are U1egible Ixre. Tang Lan ("He %Un mingwerl jiuhi: p. 6)~1) rud. lhe graphlu ",i~l j( 1$. For I dlt
os

6,

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING THB SP IRITS

ANTH ROPOMORPHIZING THE SP IRITS

the Shang. with the obvious difference that the Zhou, by sacrificing the last Sh2ng king and beheading his cauldron makers, have replaced the Shang ancestral pantheon wim the Zhou ancestral pantheon in the re;tlm ofDi.

poem does not explain precisely why this solves Jiang .Yuan's problem, but t he ensuing line implies an answer: Jiang Yuan, through her abilities to utilize the sacrifices, was able to make Oi descend. She then stepped in his footprint and .absorbed some of his potency. Not only did this allow Jiang Yuan to become pregnant, but ie also meant that her child, Hou Ji, w.as born with divine powers:

The Art of Sacrifice: The "Sheng min~ Poem of the Shijing and Hesiod's Thtogcmy Further evidence for this reading of culric practices in the Brol}u Age can be gleaned from the poem ~Sheng min~ (Mao h4S).8j Here I read poem as a reflection on the chemes of uccifice-its origins and its significance. 86 More explicitly. I argue that the poem includes a r:l.[her complex presenta-

me

tion of the relationships between ancestors and descendanrs. After providing a dose reading of the poem, I then turn to comparative material from Greece and reconsider the larger comparative claims made by the scholars discussed in [he first pom of [his chapter. The poem opens by describing the birth of H ou Ji, the ancestor of the Zhou people: The one who first ~ve birth [0 our people, This was Jiang Yuan. H ow did she give birth to the pcopler She was able to perform the yin sacrifice, and she was able to perform the Ii ucrifice, so as [0 no longer be childless. She stepped on the hig toe ofDi's fOO{print, she was dated about that which enriched her and chat which blessed her. And so she became pregnant, and so it was soon, And so she gave birth and so she reared [him]. This was Hou Ji. Jiang Yuan was unable to have a child. But she had one great power: she was able to perform the yin and si sacrifices ~so as to no longer be childle~.~ The 8S. My cr:mdation had b.:ro greatly aided by chac ofBernfurd Karlgren, Tht &<>.I: o/Od.s (ScockhoLn: MlUeUm of Far Eastern Antiquirie5, 1950), pp. '99- 101. Indeed, in some of rhe

later S«tiolU of.he poeOI below, llargdy quote trom K.lrlgren·J traomtioo. 86. My undenranding of ,1m: poem Iw been greatly enhanced by ,he imerpreu.tiolU of David Knechtgea, Stephen Owen, Willard PererJOJI, and p.uline Yu in W~'j With W. rds; Wrili~tQ/>cJllt R~i~t Tuts from &r/, o,i..., ediled by Pauline Yu, Perer Bol, Stephen Owen, and Willard Peler.on (Berkeley: Univer.ilY ofC.HfornilL Preu, 1000).

And then she completed her months, The first giving birth was like sprouring. [There occurred) no bursting. no rending. without injury, wichouc harm. Thereby manifesring his numinous n1cure (Ii~g). Hou Ji's gift is app.arent ae birth: his numinous nature allows him to emerge without harming his mother, and his birth is like the sprouting of a plam. He is thus immediately associated with the generative process. Nonetheless, Oi was angry. The high Di was not serene and not pleased with the yin and Ii s:u:rifices. {But} tranquilly she gave birth to the child. The sense here would appe.ar to be that Oi did not approve of Jiang Y wn's actions. J iang Yuan used the sacrifices to make Di descend, and without Oi's approval, she stepped in his footprint and captured some of his divine power. Hou J i, in other words, was born of a transgre~ion, in which OJ's potency was appropriated through a deceitful use of the sacrifices. Presumably because of Di's displeasure, Jiang Yuan was forced to give up HouJi: And then she pbced him in 1 narrow line The oxen and sheep nurtu red him between their legs. And chen she pl:lCed him in 1 forest on the plain. He was found by those who CUt the forest on the plain. And then she pl:lCe
70

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING T HB SP I :tITS

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING TH6 SPIRITS

Jiang Yuan keeps trying to abandon her child, but Hou Ji is repeatedly saved by animals and humans. Despite OJ's displeuure. Hau Ji is still favored by

At this poim, the frame of rhe poem shifts from a narncive of Hou Ji's actions to the perspective o f those dunting me poems. The sacrifices initi-

those below on tarth.

ated by Hou Ji have been handed down, 2nd the ch2nters describe the ir con-

Hou Ji continued to grow and was soon able to feed himself by planting; And [hen he wu actually crawling. able to stride. able to lund firmly so as [0 seck food for [hil mouth. He planted with large beans. The bare beans were waving like luamers. The gnin that wu cultivated was sprouting..

The hemp and the wheat were thick. The gourds were ample. And then Hau Jis husbandry

had the way ofhdping. He cleared away the dense grass. Hesowed it in the ydlow earth. Really even, really dense. rully growing. really becoming rall. really extending. rcally flowering. really mongo really good. really ripe ears, really solid kemds, He had his house in T ai.

Hou Ji's gift of being able to aid rhe generative process manifesu itself again. The harvest is enormous. 2nd H ou Ji. with 2mple food. is able to settle down. Hou J i then handed down the grains to t he people 2nd thus began agriculrure. And thus, too. began the sacrifices: And then he Knt down the fine grains. There was black miller, there was double-kerndled. black miller. There was millet with red 'proUts, there was millet with white sprout•. Planting them txteflllivdy, the black millet. the double-kcmdled bladt millet, Reaping them and taking them by the acre. Planting them txtctUivdy. rhe millet with red sprour., the millet with whittaprouts, carrying them on hil,houlder, carrying them on hillnck. So at to rerum and initiate the ..crifice..

7'

tinued efficacr And so, our .ucMCeJ, what are they like~ Some pound (the grain), some bale it. Some sift it, some tread it. Washing it until soaked, Steaming it until sreamed. And so we plan and so we think it over. We take southemwood, we offer fat. We take a ram so as co sacrifice to the 'pirits of the road. Roasringand broiling. So as to stan: rhe foUowing year. The sacrifices. if accepted

by the spirits, 2110w for the stan of the neXt 2gri-

cultu ral cycle. Indeed. these sacrifices are enjoyed even by Oi himself. We fill in the .Iou vessds, in the dou. in the tUllgvessds. (when) the fragrance first ucenru The high Di tranquilly enjoys it Oh how pungent it is. Hou Ji initiated the ucrifice May we not have any fauJu So they [the sacrifictl handed down by H ou JiJ reach to the present. The living are continuing the sacrifices initiated by the ancestor H ou Ji. and when performed correctly, they please OJ. Thus. 2 proper h2rmony of humms, spiria, and the narural. world is maina..ined by humans continuing the 2griculrurai and $2crificial practices initiated by Hou Ji. Indeed, the poem 1mb agticulrure and the proper use of sacrifices: the harmony of man and god is achieved through the succcssfuJ appropriation of narure through agriculture and the proper UtiliZ2rion of t hat agricultural produce to fted the gods in sacrifice. This may help explain what the poem means when it says that Hou Ji initillted sacrifices. He obviously W2S not the first to give sacrifices (since h is mother h2d aiuady done so). The sense 1nstt2d is [hat H ou Ji wu the first to institute correct sacrifices. in which the proper duties of humans and the

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING THB S PIRITS

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING THE SPIRITS

god were dc:line2rcd: humaru aid in the growth of the narural world and (hen feed Oi and [he other spirits through sacrifices. The 'pirin in rum supporr the next year's cycle (presumably through the control of the rains). Humans and spirits thus have their designutd duties and their designated spheres. Thus, the contralt drawn here between the sacrifices of Jiang Yuan and those ofHou Ji is more than simply chat the mothe r's were deceitful and the son's were not. The n:u ure of the sacrifices has clearly changed u weD. When Jiang Yuan performed sacrifices, Oi was brought down to tread on (he land. W ith Hau Ji's ncrifices, however, Oi remains in the heavens, enjoying [he ascending fu.gr:tncc. Humans arc in charge of the 19ricultural work of the earth. and Oi rtmains in his proper place in the heavens, enjoying the sacrifices given to him. But all this was possible only became H ou Ji possessed the numinous power gained from Oi. T hat power enabled him to aid the natural generative process and thus to begin agriculture and sacrifice. And the only reason he possessed that power is because Jiang Yuan had used sacrifices to steal it from Oi. And, even then, the only reason H ou Ji survived long enough to initiate agricultu re and the proper me of sacrifices was be
The poem is thus playing on the very themes that have concerned us throughout this chapter-only here the themes are worked OUt in narrative form. Jiang Yuan makes a proper descendant by appropria.ting divine power through sacrifice, and that descendant then initiates proper sacrifices. which in time will transform him into a proper ancestor. The sacrifices result in a proper genealogical order of ancestors and descendants, each with itS own proper sphere of activity. Humans use agricultu~ produce to keep Oi in Heaven, served by me mediating ancestor H ou Ji. and OJ's resulting blessings allow for the agricultural produce to continue. A perfect system of genealogical order is created. These pointS, along with the analysis of Shang and Z hou ritua.ls above, should lead us to rethink some of the larger comparative claims that have been made concerning Chinese Bronze Age views about me relations between humans and divinities. I quoted above Keightley's remark that -the Chinese knew neimer a Prometheus nor a Zeus ....., Let us rum to H esiod to evaluate the Statement. In the ThcClgony, Hesiod accounted for sacrificial practice through the well-known narrative of the mnsgressions of the Titan Prometheus. According to H esiod, Prometheus killed an ox and split it into two portions. The first portion consisted of the animal's meat, which me Titan wrapped in the stomach of the ox in order to make it look unappetizing. and the second was the bones, which were hidden in the F,H. Promethe us allowed Z eus to pick the portion he wanted. and his ruse tricked the god into choosing the worn of the two. As a punishment for this ruse, Zeus denied man the fire with which to cook. Prometheus then stole fire and gave it to man, an act that again brought down the wrath of Zeus and prompted him to send down woman. This theft of fi re, insoF.ar u it gave humaniry the ability to cook, thus won human beings autonomy from the gods, but at the cost of a tragic separation from divinity. Sacrifice, in such a narrative, recapitulate$ the crime of Prometheus, serving both as a repetition of the ruse against the gods and as a reminder of the degree to which humanity is still beholden (0 them: whereas the gods, not dependent on meat, can be satisfied with bones, man, who must eat in order to survive, has to rake (he edible portion-knowing that the satisF.acrion of hunger is only temporary. The division of the offerings in me sacrifice rhus reveals. unde r H esiod's reading. the separ:.ltion of man and divi nity, a separa-

7'

'" K~ lghd~r, "Ckan Handt and Shining Helmeu: p. 41.

13

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING THE SPIRITS

ANTHllOPOMORPHIZINtl THE SPIRITS

rion resulting from me fact th.u man can gain autonomy from the gods only by trarugressing their power and thereby resigning himself to an ultimately

equally telling of some of the tensions that surrounded sacrifices in China.at roughly the same time, a comparison of the two may yield helpful results. I argued above that sacrifice is better conceptualized in terms of transformations than of a gift, and the comparatively interesting questions then become how particular sacrifices present different aspeCts of these transfor· mations. For example, one such issue is the state to be achieved through me $:lcrifice. Is it posed, to list some possibilities, as simply a remoyal of some perceived lack, as a means of correcting the currendy skewed positions of humanity and divinity, as a reconnection with the divine, or even as a partaking of the diyine! Another issue is how this fin:l! state is achieved in the $:lCrime. Is the S:lcrifice understood as submission (0 the divine or as another rransgression. a further usurp.ation of divine power for the sake of humanity! In the cases at hand, both poems deal with similar problems: both the "Sheng min- and this portion of the Thogony revolve around the themes of the introduction of sacrifice and the proper roles for humans and gods. But the rransformations in (he narratives move in opposite directions. Hesiod's narrative begins with humaIU and gods linked genealogically; Prometheus's transgression introduces discontinuity-winning autonomy for humanity but at the COSt of a life of toil. In conrrast, Ihe "Sheng min" begins in discontinuity, and the goal is to achieve continuity. Jiang Yuan must use sacrifice to obtain divine potency. but H ou Ji !.ater institutes sacrifices in which gods and humans are transformed into proper ancestors and descendants. The 'IMogony narrates the dissolution of a genealogical continuity; the ·Sheng min" narr.l.tes its creation. It is somewhat misleading. the refore, 10 say thac China knew neither a transgressive figure like Prometheus nor a capricious god like Zeus. At the beginning of the ~Sheng min: Di is quite capricious. and Jiang Yuan transgressivcly appropriates divine powers. What is Striking in the comparison of the two narratives. in other words, is not that one involves human transgression and c.apricious gods and the other does not; bolh have this. What is STriking is, rather, the presentation of the transforming S:lcri6ces. I mention these points of comparison between "Sheng min" and Hcsiod not in order to proclaim these poems as -founding myths· of Chinese and Greek culture. respectively. As I have argued elsewhere, the entire notion of foundational myths needs 10 be rethought,91 and, as I have argued in the In-

doomed life of labor and hardship. The sacrifice is thus an offering to the gods, bue one that underscores, rather than alleviates, me radial disparity between humanity and divinity. As Jean-Pierre Vemant has argucd: In devouring whu can be eaten, men simultancowly restore meir failing strength and acknowledge the baseness of their human condirion-o:onfirming their ab.5olute submission to those very Olympian gods whom the Titan Prometheus, when he established the p1Itfern in the first sacrifice, once thought to rrick with impunity. The alimentzry rirual which establishes communication b«ween man and divinity iudf undet$COrQ the gulf which sunders them. That communication is founded upon :l rdigiow rimal which. by memorializing Promer-hells's error. reaffirnu on every occasion of its performance the aistence of chat uncfOssable gulf. And it is the pur· pose of me myth, as rold by Hesiod, precisely to lay bue the origins of the separa· tion and to make plain its dire consequences." Thus, following the transgression of Prometheus. ·cont.ac( an only be made with the gods through S:lcrifice, which at the same time consecntes the imp.assable b.arrier between monal.s and immoruls."119 The point is of interest. for according to Vemant and Marcel Detienne, much of early Greek sacrifici.al practice corresponded closely co Hesiod's reading. An cnmple can be seen in the Athenian Skirophoria, the annuaJ slaughter of an ox for Zeus in the last month of the yc.ar. After the animal wu slain. its bones and fat were burned as an offering. and the meat was consumed by humans in a greac feast. 90 This division of the sacrificial portions is identical to that seen in the narratives of Hesiod, a fact thar Vemant interprets u meaning that Hesiod construCted his narratives in re!.ation to contemporuy religious belieEs and practices, and thus that the n.arracive of Prometheus may reveal some of the implicit meanings and significance of early Greek S:lcrificial praCfice. 91 And if, as I have argued. me ~Sheng min- is

U. Jean·Pierre Vmunt. ' Sacrificw and A1imenlary UKU:S in Hcsiod·. Myth of Frome· Ihcw: p. 61. 19. Vemam. 'Tho: Myth ofFroCllechew in Huiod: p. 1'5. 90. Burkert, C.ttk Rtli,w", pp. 55-59; and idenl, Homo Ntt'"J. pp.•)6- •.,. Sec also Jean. Louis Durand. SatrifiCt rt 111100", t" C,ttt alle;r",.,. 91. Vcr.WII, · Saerifiri.allnd Alirmnllry Coda In Huiod's Myth ofProIR"hcu.: p. 6a.

"

p:r.. For my critique of die way .he ternl "mythology" is wed in early China Iludies. K(: chap. 1 oflllr Am~Wlk"'r ojerratio".ln brirf, my critique is lIuJ I~ (crm is wed (0 refer (0 a

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ANTHROPOMORPHIZ I NG THB SPIR I TS

ANTHIlOPOMORPHIZING THII SPIRITS

troouction to this book, comparisons that define the cultures in question nom the viewpoint of one particular practice arc always misleading. The comparison of these two narratives points to a differenr way of approaching these issues. When scholars cu.d this distinction in terms of differing 2$surnptions in Greece lnd China-of tragic diKontinuity and gc:nulogical continuity. respectivdy- they arc: rnistU.ing effect for (.awe and ruding the . normative product of sacrifice as a su.rting assumption. The point is of relt vance, for. if I am right that tbese arc normative claims for sacrificial action ramer Ihan pervasive assumptions. mcn a different form of cu1runl analysis is called for. instead of trying to read other aspects of these cultures in terms of such assumptions, we should sirw.re these nonnative S2crificial. clainu within the longer cultural deb.arc of which they were a part. If these are me normative claims of the sacrificial experu supported by the courtS, then how were they received! As we shall see in the next chapter, both of these sacrificial models became the objects of significant critique, and one cannot understand those critiques without understanding the practices that were being criticized. Conclusion

As discussed earlier in this chapter. both K. C. Chang and Julia Ching pos· ited a primordial experience of shamanism underlying Chinese tradition. and both tried to connect this fi.mher to an even more primordial sacred experience of humanity in general Indeed. both argued mat insofar as such a primordial. shamanistic experience underlies all civilizations, China is thus closer to mat sacred linking of Heaven and Earth than is the WesL Even if Ching and C hang's arguments about China were correct, their attempts to characterize shamanism. as well as a belief in continuity between the human and divine realms. as primordial forms of human spiriruality would still be highly suspeCt. Why is continuity somehow more primordial. and the disaberrarion" in humancontinuity they see in the West what Chang calls an M ity's history!

primordW. unciangingJyllcm ofbeBd. u lher ,han to nngoing.. ever.changing narrat;~.tha, are cOlUluntly being reworked and r(visc
77

As Jonathan Z. Smith has argued: It urikes me that historians of religion have been weakest in interpreting those myths which do not reveal a cosmos in which man finds a place to dwell and on

which he found [lieJ his existen(C. but rather which suggest the problematic tWUre of cxlstenCe and fundamental tension in the cm:mos. I have in mind such ruditiolUl as dualisric creation myths. Earth·diver traditiolUl, Tricksters. or the complex narra· tives of Com or Rice Mothel'S who aeate by 10athsome" processes (e.g.. rubbi ng the dirt off their bodies. by defecation. scaetion). Oearly these mythologies. many of which arc extremely archaic. point to a different spiritual horizon [han thar de· scribed by Eliadc:u the fundamental "archaic onrology: 91

I would go further than Smith here: I would question the very usefulness of terms such as "archaic Mand Mspiritual horizon." Nonetheless. the basic point Smith raises is an importam one: there is no empirical evidence to support the notion that harmony with the "sacred" is somehow more primordial in human experience than are radical tensions and conflicts. Even for those scholars like C hang who wish to claim that such an assumption existed in early China, there is no basis for arguing that this assumption is closely linked to some archaic. primitive experience lost by other civilizations. But. in the case at hand. the argument is not only methodologically flawed but also empirically inaccurate: I have followed Keighrley in arguing against the hypothesis that shamanism was a guiding force in the State socie· ties of Bronze Age C hina. Keighdey's provocative argument about "making ancestors" presents the ritual systems of the Shang court as anempts to in· fluence nom the bonom up. The higher. non·ancestral gods were the most powerful beings. but they were also relatively impervious to human rituals. The spirits of deceased humaru were more maUeable. but. even here. a hierarchy held: the more distant in rime the deceased human. the more powerful but less subject to influence it became. The concern of the ritual system was thla ro transform these deceased humans into proper ancestors. H owever. although my rt2dings of the oracle-bone inscriptions have largely followed Keighdey·s. I reach different conclusions. In particular. I question Keightley's attempts to rt2d the Bronze Age material as evidence of a proto-bureaucratic mentality as defined by Weber. The Bronze Age sacrificial systems supported by the Shang and Zhou courts do not. I have argued. revt21 an assumption of harmony between humans and gods. nor do

9J. Jonl,hall

Z. Smith. Ille Wobbling P;vot," p. 100.

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ANTHR.OPOMORPHIZING THE SPIRITS

ANTHROPOMORPHIZING THE SPIR IT S

they reveal:!. belief in a ao tl aCJ vision of sacrifice. On me contrary. What we can reconstruct of Bron:ze Age religion reveals a highly agonistic world in which humans were constandy trying to force impulsive divine powers into

roles defined by the living and

to

convince them

to

act :accordingly. Keight-

ley's argument about making ancestors, in other words, should lead us to see sacrifices lS ;lcrcmpu to transfonn c.apridous divinities intO figures who could be conrrolkd by the living: humans, while in pan submitting themselves to the ancestral powers, we re also actively transforming and ordering mem. In short, the concern in the ancestral sacrifices W2S not simply to submit to the ancestors; rather, it was to Ctt;lCC proper ancestors to which the living could then become proper descend:anu. And these ancestors were then called on to pacify the higher, non-ancestral powers-including. most important, Oi. The cosmos would thus, to the limited extent possible, become o rdered by the living. The Shang SlIIcrincial system was an attempt to domesticate tbese bighly agonistic forces and place them within a hierarchy manipulable for tbe sake of human interests. Far from revealing an assumption of harmony, a belief in tbe benevolent intentions of the divine powers, and a desire to adjust to the .....orld as given, sacrificial practice in the Shang was aimed at a radical transfo rmation of m e divine world. a transformation undertaken precisely so tbat humanity could appropmte and domesticate natute for its purposes. Such an attempt to transform botb tbe divine and the narural worlds does indeed involve an enormous investment in sacrificial action. but t hat investment emerged not from an assum ption of harmonious collaboration berween man and god but from a sense of radical discontinuicy and lack ofbarmony. I have argued that similar ideas are visible in t he Western Zhou materials as well, and I t herefore question tbe attempt to read the Western Z hou materials as evidence of a correlative mode of thinking. I suspect, in fact, that what we see in the Shang and Z hou are a shared set of practices common in the North China plain. The Zhou conquest simply meant a replacement of the Shang pantheon with the Zhou pantheon, but the general ritual principles were much the same. The basic notion was to try to use sacrifices to build suppott through tbe ancesrn1 pantheon and ultirmtdy win the support even ofDi. As I noted in t he Introduction, most discussions of ancient China have been based on the claim that a bdief in continuity and harmony between the divine and human reaIms pervaded the Bronze Age period. The comparative

7.

frameworks have tben diverged in their reading of the later history of early C hina: Did such an assumption of harmony continue in early C hina, or was mere a shift- toward rationality and humanism with t he rise of phi1osopby~ But if, as I bave argued in t his chapter. no such assumption existed. then we will have to develop a rather different reading of Warring St:.l.[es and Han developments.

GAIN I NG THE POWERS OF SPIRITS

2

Gaining the powers of spirits The Emergence of SelfDivinization Claims in the Fourth Century Be

8,

leads to one subject of this chapter: the question of why such claims arose at this time. l As noted in the Inrroducrion, much of the secondary scholarship on texts such as rhese is divided between two readings: one school of interpretation sees these texts as records of a shift from religion (based on an animistic worldview) to philosophy (based o n a human-centered worldview); m e other views them as an organic development of a set of deep assumptions concerning rhe continuity of humans and divinities. Both readings are based on the claim that philosophy in early China emerged from an earlier shamanism, but they disagree on the degree to which philosophy broke from rhis earlier tradition. As we saw in t he preceding chapter, the shamanism hypothesis for the Chinese Bronze Age is questionable. In this chapter, I argue t hat the shamanism hyporhesis, and hence our understanding of the development of Chinese thought, grows out of a misleading comparison of G reece and China and thar t he concerns evident in this quotation from the Guanzi were not outgrowths of an eadiet shamanism. I offer an alternative explanation and argue for a diffe rent approach for comparing these developments with chose found in ancient Greece.

Conctntmt the 'Ii as if a. spirit. and all the myriad things will reside within. Can you concentrate? Can you unifyl Can you not engage in crackmiling a.nd milfoil divina_

Spirits Within Humans: The Issue of Shamanism in

tion and yet understand auspiciousness and inauspiciousness! Can you Stopi' Can you reach an endl Can you nor seek from others and obtain it in you rsdP. Think about it. think about ie, and chink about it again. If you thi~ about ie but do not penetrate, the ghOSts and spirits will penetrate if. This is not due to the power of the ghosts and spirits; it is due to the ultimilte poillt of essemial 'Ii,!

Early China and Early G reece

The fourth-century

BC

authors of chis p.assage from the "Neiye~ chapter

of the Guanzi are :uguing for

'Ii-bued cosmology in which spirits can understand the future not because they control it but because, as concentrated 'Ii, everything resides within them. In a similar fashion, those humans :.l.

who can concentrate their qi [0 the same degree as a spirir will also gain an understanding of auspiciousness without resorting to the arts of divination. As we will see, t his sntement is only one of a number of such claims voiced in this period abo ut the abilities of humans to gain access to divine powers without the mediation of ritual specialists. The emergence of these views

K. C. Chang was a strong advocate of the view that Chinese thought of the Warring States period evolved from earlier shamanistic practices: What may be seen as the most striking feature of ancient Chinese civiliudon is that ideologically spukingi! was created within a framework of cosmogonic holism. In the words of Frederick Mote, "the genuine Chinese cosmogony is that of organismic process. meaning chac all of [he parts of the entire cosmos bdong to one organic whole and that they all interact as participants in one spontaneously sdf-generating life process." This organismiC process. T u Wei-ming amplifies, "exhibits three basic motifs: connnuity. wholeness, and dynamism. All modalities of being. from a rock to heaven, are integral p,artS of acontinuum... . Since nothing is outside of this continuum. the chain of M:ing is never broken. A linkage will always be found between any given pair of things in the universe." This ancient Chinese world view. sometimes referred to as

~. Portion, of thi.! dupter are taken from my "Humans and God.J: The Theme of SelfDlvinlulioll ill Early China and Early Greece:

.,

GAINING THB POWERS OF SPIR I TS

·cOfTd:u:ive cO£moiogy; iJ surdy not unique; in cuenc!!: it represents the substratum of the hu man view of the world found widely among primitive societies (IiCC, e.g., Uvi.Sctauss). \Vhat is uniquely Significant about its presence in ancient China is the M that a verkable civiiiucion was built on tOP of and within iti confines. J

Julia Ching argues:l very similar position,· and A. C. Graham develops a comp1nlhle argument. Graham reads the "Neiyc" U;I; mediution text based on earlier shamanisric prlllcricc: "It is interesting also in providing clear evi· dence that the medit:uion practiced priv;mdy and recommended to rulers as an lrcanwn of government descends directly from the nance of the professional shaman," But whereas shamanism dealt with actwl spirin, the "Neiyc" deals with n:arun.listic. numinous forces: "By this period the gods and ghous, like Heaven itself, a fC in t he direction of becoming depersonalised though still vaguely numinous forces of nature.... M an himself can aspire, not indeed to omniscience (since Chinese thinking does not deal in absolutes), but to that supremely lucid awareness which excites a shudder o f numino us awe." T he meditation techniques o f che "Neiye~ thus involve a shifting of emphasis from linking with the spirits to perfecting the self "The shamanic origin o f the exercise is plain. The point of it however is not to become a medium fo r t he gods o r for deceued anceStors. This is a programme for self-petfection, u usual addressed primarily to the rulers.~ As such, the text ~may well be the earliest Chinese interpretation of the exper ience o f mysrial oneness:! Although Graham does not go as far u Chang and Ching in directly connecting shamanism co later not ions of correlative cosmology, he d oes, like C hang and Ching. S« the n ocion o f hunwu being fully linked to the oneness of the cosmos u a philosophical re-reading of an earlier shamanistic aperience. Indeed , the main d ifferences in the positions of these scholars concern the relations between chis earlier shamanism and lacet philosophy. For Chang and C hing, shanunism marked the primordial experience out of which later Chinese philoso phy grew, whereu for Graham (he philosophy involved a significant rewo rking of t he earlier shamanistic practice. C hang and C hing are arguing for a fundamental assumption of mo nism in early

). K. C. Chang. "Ancient China and III Anrhropological Significance: pp. 161-6a. MYlficilm "M J(j~l'hip j~ OJ,.., pp. 67-1)1. S. Graham, DUpWfn'! OJfht T 40, pp. 101, 104.

~. Ching.

GAI NING THE P OWB R S O F S PIRIT S

"

C hina that can be traced to a shamanist ic pUt, and Graham is utilizing a ~religion co philosoph( framework in which part of the distinctiveness of

C hinese philosophy emetged when thinkers turned from shamanism to selfcultivation.' In both approaches, however, shamanism lies behind Chinese philosophy. These arguments by C hang and G raham are closely paralleled by a large body of scholarship on ancient Greece char argues thac G reek phiJosophy emerged against a shamanistic background. The most influential t hesis was Chat advanced by E. R. Dodds. Much u G raham claims for C hina, Dodds argues that a fundamental shift in nocions of the self occurred in Greece in the fi fth century Be: The ·soul" was no rductant prisoner of the body (in pre-fifth century ac Greece); it was the life or spirit of the body, and perfectly at home there. It was here that the new religious pattern made ir, fateful contribution: by crediting man with an occult ,df of divine origin, and thus setting soul and body at odds, if introduced into European culture a new inrerpretation of human existence, the interpretation we call puritanical?

Dodds arguu that this occult notion o f t he soul is traceable to Central Asian shaman istic practices: Now a belief of this kind is an essential dement of the shamanistic culture which still exisfl in Siberia. ... A ,haman may be described :as a psychically urutab!e person who has received a call to the rdigiolU life. ... H is own soul u thought to leave its body and tr.avd to distant parfl, most often to the spirit world .... From these experiences, nur.ated by him in extempore song. he derives the skill in divination. rdigiolU poetry, and magical medicine which makes him socially impottant. He be· comes the repository of a lupemonnal wisdom. (p.14O)

Dodds argues that chis shamanistic culture emered G reece in t he seventh century from Scythia md Thrace ( pp. I ~ O, 1 4~)' and was picked up by fig6. ~raJ Otoo scholars have devdoped this sarnc "religion to philosophy" ~rgument in regard to fhe "Neiye: as wdI as the rdated "XiJllhu" chapters. (I discuss the "Xiruhu" tau in Ch.pter 4.) .5«, e.g .. Shilnta, "Klnshi shihm ni okenlshin to d6"; and Qiu Xigui, 1i:ria Daojia jingqi shuo de y:mjiu." Bach Shib;au ami Qiu paint the same gmeral narr.ltive that Gralum doeJ- from a shamanistic practice Inscd on external Ipiriu entering the human body to . ph~olophical regimen Inscd on the cultivation of an infcmallpiru. , . Dodds, Th G,ulu ~~d fht Irr~rio""', p. 1)9; hereinafter cited in the tUt. a. Dodd.! Is bu~ding here on Karl Mudi"s work; JeC his "Scythia."

"

"

GA I NING THB POW B RS OF S PIRITS

GA I NING T H E POWERS OF SPIUTS

ures such as Pythagoras and Empcdoclu: these men diffused the belief in a detach.able: soul or self, which by suitable techniques can be withdrawn lTom me body even during life, a self which is older than the body and will ourwr

Chinl, might in fa.ct have been Iranian magi who entered China during the Bronze Age. 1l And, of course. ,he Scythians. whom Dodds sees as having become so influential in Greece, were Irlnians. This line of reasoning implies that both Chinl and Greece received a similar diffusion of idelS and techniques ftom me same Irlr\ian source. Moreover, H. S. Nyberg hu £2mously argued that Zoroastrianism was influenced by Siberian shamanism. U Thus. were one to follow all these links, one could tnce l shlmanism arising in Siberia. influencing Ir.ronian cuJture, lr\d in turn influencing both Greece and China. However. severotl problems arise for anyone who wished to trace such a hinorical development, First. Nyberg's arguments about links between Siberilr\ shlmanism and Zoroastrianism hlve been widely rejected by special14 ists. Even Eliade himself, who lrgues explicitly thlt shamanism wu diffused from Siberi:a to many cultures throughout the world. has questioned memo Elilde insreld reads Zoroutri:anism u revealing elements of l belief in a sacred link between heaven and elrrh-ideas, as discussed in the pteviow chapter, that Eliade relds as primordill elements of human experience. He thus opposes the attempt to see such elements as l result of l diffusion of shamanism from Siberil:

it" [0

(pp. 146-47). In short. [he diffusion of sh2ffi.tnisric culruce to Greece: led (he emergence: of a true dualism of body and soul-a duilism mat had

never existed before in early Greece. We have seen-or I hope we have sun-how contact with shzmanisdc belief. :and pncrices might suggest to a thoughtful people like the: Greeks tk rudiments of such a psychology: how the notion of p'ychk Qcursion in sleep or nance might sharpen the soul-body antithesis; how the shamanistic "retreat" might provide the model for a ddibeme ukais, a consciolU training of the psychic powers through ;lNtinence and spirirual exercises: how tales of vanishing and reappearing shamans might encourage [he belief in an indemuctible magical or dacmonic sdf. (pp. 149-50)

Dodds goes on to deu.il how this notion of an occwt self of divine origin was later appro priated by Placo ( pp. 107- 35). These ideu have since been hody debated. Jan Bremmer, for one, hu strongly criticized Dodds', shamanism hypothesis. After a lengthy survey of the evidence, both in Greece and Scythia, Bremmer concludes: "No convincing evidence exisrs for shamanistic influence on Archaic Greece.... It has not yet even been shown that the Scythians who were supposed by Dodds to have influenced the Greeks knew a shamanistic journey of the soul!~9 Peter Kingsley, however, hu recently come OUt in defense of me hypomesis.lO Carlo Ginzburg hu referred £2vor.robly co it u a piece of what he sees u l widespreld diffusion of shlmanism lcroS5 Eumia in the early --=~ .J II

p<'~.

I will follow Bremmer in rejecting Dodds's hypothesis.. Before doing so, however, I would like to stress the implications of Dodds's theory for the shanllr\ism hypothesis made fo r China. Argumenu thlt might l ( first glance appear simJ.ar to Dodds's diffusion hypothesis hlve been made for ChinlVictor M lir hls ugued, blSed on linguistic and archaeological evidence, that the 14111, the Chinese term usually tunslated u ~shamln- in reference to euly

The ecstatic and mystical dements in the rdigion of Zarathustn that bear resemblances to the ideology and rechniques of shamanum form part of a complex and hence do not imply any "shamanic" structUre in Zanthtutl'l's religious experience,. The sacred space. the importance of lOng. mystical or symbolical communicadon bctwccn heaven and eanh, the initiatory or funerary bridge-these various dements, although they form an integral part of Asian shanunism. precede and go beyond it. IS As I noted in the previous chapter, I rejecr Eliade's uguments concerning (he Pfimordiality of notions of Slcred space in humln experience. But it is relevlnt to the cUlTent discussion that even Eiilde-the figure one would expect to be most sympathetic to Nyberg-has rejected his cbims.

I~. Mait, 'Old Sinitic

9· Brelnmer. Th &,IJ Gmli ~"'(P' pi'~ Sowl, pp. )4-SJ; quotation at p. 47· 10. KinpJ(y. A",it~1 P~iIoJOpbJ' MJlltrJ. ,,..j MPF; see allo idem. -Grecka. Sru.mana, and Magi: II . Gin:dlurg. &.I4Ii•• , pp.

111~4 ,176~,a.

'Mpg. Old Persi;.n M41"1. and English 'Magician,'" Nyberg. Oi. RtliJiollt1l a.. A~.~ IN~. 14. For an ovcl'Vkw of the argumen ... see Widengren. "Henri!< Samuel Nyberg and IraI).

nian Slud!(1 in the Liglu ofPer.onal Remin iKcnca: I,. Ellade, ShoIm~~ilm. p.l9'9.

86

GAINING THB POWBR S OF SP IRIT S

GAINING THB POWERS OF SPIRITS

Moreover, we have already secn that many d:usicists reject the claim of

diffusion from Scythia to Greece. And, on other end of Eurasia, Mair has argued that the wu, who he claims were magi from Iran, were not shamans: It has been CUlltOmary for students of Chinese civilization [0 translate ' IfIJllg li.e..

WII]

as 's haman: but this is wrong on several counts. In the 6.1"$[ plue, the shaman was

the Juding representative of a specific type cf religious system prtcriced by Siberian and Ural·Altak peoples. Perhaps the most characteristic feature of this tradition was the shaman's ecstatic trance-flight to heaven during initiation aJ\.d other rituals.

The shamans also suved. the community as a whole by retrieving the errant souls of sick people and escotting the spirits of the dead to [h~ ocher world. This is in con· [[asl [0 che 'mr~g who were closely associilted with the COUrtS of various rulers and

who were primarily responsible for divination, astrology, puyer, and healing with medicines. 16 Thus, the figure in C hinese studies who has moSt strongly argued for Ir.anian influence on China rejects the shamanism hypothesis. The apparent parallel with Dodds's view does not arise at all; almough Mair argues for.a significant diffusion of Iranian ideas and practices inco China, JUSt as Dodds argues for a significant diffusion from the same source into Greece, Mair does not see this diffusion as involving .anything that might be called shamanism. Chang and Ching. of course, would disagree with Mair's opposition to the shamanism hypothesis. But since they argue mat shamanism was an inheritance from China's primitive past, they, tOO, would strongly deny any claim that shamanism was diffused inco China from Siberia via Iran. The diffusion hypothesis rhus filces severe problems on all fronts. But what interests me more at this point is the opposite ways that shamanism is employed as an explanatory principle by Dodds, on the one hand, and Chang and Ching. on me other. For Chang and Ching {and, to a lesser degree, Graham}, shamanism is me causative f.tctor behind the dominance of a monistic worldview in China. For Dodds, shamanism was behind the emergence of dualism in Greece. Once again, we see the same basic concrast of China and Greece, with China defined by monism and Greece by dualism. When the same phenomenon (in this case, shamanism) is credited with such opposite ramifications in twO traditions, the adequacy of the hypothe-

16.

Mair, 'Old Sinilic 'M}Ql," p. 3S.

"

ses should at least be questioned. However, variation in itself does not refute me hypotheses; it is, after all, possible that me same phenomenon can have decidedly contrary ramifications in twO cultures, particularly i£ as so many scholars have cried to argue, the two cultures are based on different guiding assumptions. So, a full reconsideration of mese issues requires that we look at the evidence in detail. I first turn to a discussion of Empedocles-the figure who pl.ays such an important role in Dodds's argument. I nrst critique Dodds's use of diffusion as an explanatory principle to understand Empedocles and will offer an alternative approach. I then analyze the relevant materi.al from early China. I will argue that the shamanism hypothesis, as well as the larger contrastive framework for studying China and Greece, should be rethought. I will conclude by suggesting a different approach to this material, as well as to the larger issue of comparing China and Greece. Humans and Gods in Early G reece In the NicomllclKan Ethics, Aristotle discusses ';"hat it means for one to practice the theorericallife: Such a life would be superior fO fhe human levd. For somecne will live it not insofar as he is a hunun being. but insofar ilS he has some divine dement in him.. . . Hence if undersfanding is somerhing divine in comparison with a human being. so also will the life that expresses understanding be divine in comparison with human life. We ought not follow the proverb-writers, and "think human, since you are human.~17

A philosopher is one who has risen above the human and become, at least in part, divine. This claim came OUt of traditions of self·divinization beginning at leilSt a full century earlier and, as is de.ar by the polemic at the end of Aristotle's statement, was made in opposition to numerous other views at the time concerning the nature of divinities and humans and the proper demarcation between the two. As is well known. the importance of maintaining a strict separation between humans and gods is a recurrent [heme in early Greek

GAINING THe POWSllS OF SPllllTS

GAINING THE POWER S OF SPIRITS

88

writings, as is the injunction to avoid the hubris of trying divinicy, lS In the Iliad, Apollo warns Diomedes:

to

get too dose to

Take care, give back, son ofTydeus, rod strive no longer to make yoursdflikc [he gods in mind, since never the same is the breed of gods. who arc immortal, and men who walk groundling,I9

Or, as Pindar wrote: It is a dispens ation of the gO
The theme also plays an important role in the Hesiodic cosmology and view of u.crifice discussed in the previous chapter. Much of early Greek philosophy, however, involved attempts to break this demarcation, to criticize me ritual specialists of the day, and to emphasize the abilities of humans to gain direct access to divine powers. One of the I enliest figures to make this argument was Empedocles/ as in, for example, this fragment on the golden age of man: They did not have Arel as god or Kydoimos, nor king Zeus nor Kronos nor Poseidon but qu~n Kypris. Her (hey propitiated with holy imagel and painted ornimal figurel, with perfumel of subtle fragrance ornd offerings of distilled myrrh and sweet:smdling frankincense, ornd pouring on the earth libations of golden honey. Their altar was nor drenched by the daughter of bulls, but this was the grearest defilement among men-ro bereave of life and eat noble limbs. ll

18. Sec the excclknt discusJion by Ro~n. Hcrm,,,,,,tin ~s Poliric. (Oxford: Oxford Univer$ity PrcSJ.I9$7). pp. S8-59.1 alii indebted to Rosen for thr: quotatioru from A.istotle. Homer. and Pindar. t9. Homer. iJiad. V -440- 4~. in n..rliad ofHomtr. p. 140. lO. Pinda •• Isthmianl 5. v.u-L6. in Pinda'" Victory Song!. p. 309· 11. My undemanding of Empcdocles has b«n grmly enhanced by IUhn. -Rdigion and Natural PhiloJophy in Empcdocles' Doctrine of thr: Soul-; and PanagiOIOU. "Empcdoclc.! on

n..

His Own Divinity'u. DicU fragmrot 118: in Emptdqc~: the: tat in the: form 0'18; 'u8. p. 181.

n.. Extont FrogmmtJ. 'u8. p. ah; herci~ftcr cited in

"

Empedocles is explicitly atucking me religious pnctices of his daypractices based on sacrificial offerings to a pantheon of anthropomorphic deities. Prior to this world. Empedocles argues, was a period ruled by Kypris, or Love. This opposition to sacrificial. practice is a recurring theme in Empedoclu: HWill you not cease from the din of slaughter~ Do you not see that you are devouring one another because of your careless way of thinking:'" (DI36; #In. p. a8s). Below I consider why Empedoclcs aruibuted sacrifice to a "careless way of thinking." Here, I delineate why an opposition to the world of anthropomorphic deities and to s;l.crificial practice is so importam to Empedodes. To do so, it is necessary to situate Empedocles within a series of contemporary claims being made in opposition to the sacrifices carried out in the name of the polis. As discussed in the previous chapter, Greek polis sacrifices involved claims of ritual. separation between man and god. It was this ritual separation that figures like Pindar were supporting and that several. movements in the sixth and fifth centuries Be were crying to break down. One eumple among many of these groups is the Orphies. As a series of startling paleographic finds has demonstrated, [he Orphics were a presence in [he fifth century Be. n In explicating the Orphic critique of sacrifice. Vernant and Detienne rum to a narrative concerning hununs, the Titans, and Dionysus.104 The narrative recounts how the Titans dismembered and devoured Dionysus. But Dionysus was then reconstituted, and Zeus punished the Titans by killing them with a thunderbolt. Humans were then born from the Titans' ashes. As a consequence of this history, humans possess within themselves both the guilt of the Titans' crime and a divine spark from the devoured Dionysus. To erue this crime and cultivate the divinity within. man is cal.Jed on to follow Orphic practices and renounce the sacrificial. meat of the polis. Orphic

~J . .sce Burkert. "Orphism ~nd B~cchic Myneries"; and Frill!: Graf. "Dionysian

and Or-

phic E&charology '14. Vernam and Detienne fairly uncritically acccpt. the: antiquity of !Ills nar ...tive. AI,hough 1 accept their Wiling. there is an cnOrmouJ body of JeCondary literature on the ropic. Prior to lhe: .«cm pakographic discoveries. the scholarly world wa.s split on this question. Am of~~s. For eonvcnicnt .sce. e.g., Guthrie. Orpbno. ond G...J. Rdigic~; and U nforth. IUlUmaries of !l1oC paleographic evidencc for the antiquity of the narrative, Jcc Kahn, "Wa.s Euthyphro the Author of Ihr: Det-veni Papyrwr pp. 57-60; and Fritz Graf. "Dionysian;md Orphic Eachatology: pp. )39-45.

n..

,0

,.

GAINING THB POWBRS OF SPIRITS

GAINING THB POW81lS OF SPIIlITS

practices, including vegetarianism. should thus be understood 2$ 211 arrempr

Empedocles, like the Orphics, strongly opposed this ritual separation of humans and gods. In direct contrast to the tragic cosmology encoded in the sacrificial. practice of me polis. Empedocles proposed a system in which hununs and the gods are inherendy linked. Empedocles began by redefining the deities as the roots underlying all that exisu: W Hear first the four roou of all things: bright Zeus and life-bringing H era and Aidoneus and Nesris, whose tens are me source of morral srreanu" (06; '" p. 164). The gods are not anthropomorphic deities separate n om the world yet in direct control of it; on the contrary, mey are the elementallnses of [he world. Empedocles elsewhere defines these roou as fire, water. earth, and air (01,. '8, p. 166) and explains the cosmos in terms of their interacrion:

to reject the sacrificial practices of the polis and its tragic separ;ttion of humans and gods and to instead strive to join with the gods once again. As Vemant .arguu: By consenting to sacrifice a livi ng animal to the gods in the Promethean manner, as official wonh ip [«Juites. men only repeat the Titans' crime indefinitdy. By refusing this sacrifice. by fo rbidding the bloodshed of any animal, by fUming away from fleshy food [ 0 dedicate themsel ves to a totally ~pure' uceric life- l life ilio completdy alien to the social and rdigiow nonns of the ciry-men would shed all the Titanic dements of their nature. In DionyslU they would be able to resto re that part of themsdvQ ,har is divine. By returning [ 0 th e god in this way each would accomplish. on the humm levd and within the framework of human existence, same

mis

movt:menr of reunifiQl.don that Dionysus himself knew;u a god during rhe torment in which he wou firsr dismembered and then reconstituted.:H The rejectio n of S2crifice by [he O rphics wu rhus based on a larger rejection of the ritual separation of humans and gods maintained in the practices of the polis. 16 Indeed, one of the paleographic discoveries, a series of gold leaves from Thurii, includes the statement ~ Happy and blessed one, you will be god instead of mortaL· 27 The O rphics were claiming the ability ro transcend the discontinuity of gods and humans found in the sacrificial system and become divine themselves. This gives us some context for understanding the quo[;ltion nom Pindar given above. Pindar's call to humaru to stop seeking ro become gods was hardly a rhetorical flourish. The sacrificial practices of me day strongly as serted me radical separation of man from god, and movements that attempted to reject t his separation and proclaim the potential of humans to divinize themselves had sprung up. Pindar was thus reacting [0 growing trends of his day.

l S, Verman!. -AI Man', T abk: p. SI; IU also Detienne, "Culiruary PriK'lices and ,he Spirit

of Sacrifice: pp. 1-'. all. A different in!erprtntion h;u hem given by M. 1.. West (n.. CJrpbU: P........ pp. 144so), who .uds the Orphic narrative of Diony.w aJ a shamanistic initiatory Tirual. Like Meuli and Dodda, Wen ruda .hamaru.m :II having entered Greece !Tom Cemral Asia during dle classical period. and he IUS Orphism:ll a pitrf of this: diffu.l ion. For the ''''''01).1 provided below, I find the hypothesis: of I diffu.lion of .hamanism unconvincing. 11. Graf, "Oionylian and O rphic Eadutology; pp. 146. 1S4.

All theae :ue equal and of like age, but each h;u a differ'ent prerogative. and its parricul:u character'. and they prevail in rum u the rimc comCi round.... Theae are the only real t hings, but u they run through each other they become differcnt objects at different times. yet they are throughout (orever [he ume. (D.,; '8, p. 16,) Thc cosmic process is thcn defined in terms of the interaction of these roots: Under strife they have different fomu and are all ,eparate. but they come together' in love and arc desired by one another. From them comes all thar w;u and is and will be hereafter- trees have sprung from them. and mcn and women. and animals and birds and water-nourished fish. and long·lived gocb roo, highest in honor. For these are the only rcal things, and 2Ji they run th rough cach other they ;usume differ'ent , haFt:'. for the mixing interchangea (hem. (Dal; '.4, p. 171)

In such a cosmology, everything-from gods to humans to objeru-is composed of [he same roots. Not only are humans and gods not sepanted, they are in f..ct inherencly connected. Indeed. differentiated things exist at all o nly because of the strife that brealu apart t he prope r harmony oflove. Hence Empedocles' contempr for sacrifice: sacrifice incorrectly asswnes a division between animals. humans. and gods-wherein animals are sacrificed by humans for thc sake of t hc gods-when in f..ct all three of these are linked. In contrast ro a theisric understanding of the universe, Empedodes calls for a wdivine understanding~: "Happy the ma n who has gained the wealth of divine understanding, wretched he who cherishcs an unenlightW ened opinion about the gods (DIp; #95, p. aS1). Here we arrive at the crucial points. Having denied the Hesiodic claim of a division between humans and gods. Empedocles makes an argument as to

"

GAINING THB POWBR,S OP SPIR.ITS

GAINING TH B POWBRS OF SP I RITS

the potentia] of thought or divine understanding. A him of what Empedodes means by this can be found in another Set of fragments: ~For he is not

Humans, therefore, are simply a transitory form. but the thought of humans can be divine. And this understanding grants the practitioner the ability to control (he srrife of the roots:

"

equipped with a human head on a body. [twO br2nches do not spring from his back.] he hu no feet. no swift knees. no shaggy gc:niuls, but he: is mind alone, holy and inexpressible, darting through the: whole cosmos with swift thoughcs· (013); '91. p. a5)). This description of mind is quire: close in bnguagc: to another fTagmc:nt that describes the sphere of Love: -rhere the swift limbs of the: sun are not distinguished ... in this w.ay it-is held fast in me dose covering of harmony. a rounded sphere:. rejoicing in encircling stillne.u- ( 017.121, p. 187). And to anothcr that appears to describe either Love itself or the state achieved by 2 wise man: -Por two bl'2nche$ do not spring from his b.ack. he has no fut, no swift knees, no organs of reproduction, but he is equ.a1 to himself in every direction, without any beginning or end, a rounded sphere. rejoicing in encircling stillneu'" ( D2.9/~; p. 188). The implication of these fragments would appear to be that Love as well as thought is the state of perfect harmony for the four roots. Divinity, therefore. is located in harmony, not in anthropomorphic deities. Accordingly, divinity is fully achievable by humans through understanding. which is itself the divine harmony of Love. Such ideas are expanded in Empedodes' discussion of daimons. As he argues in the Kllthllrmoi, a daimon ill one in whom the four roots are properly combined, and one. therefore, '"[0 whom life long-lasting is apportioned" (DIIs: '107. p. 2.70). But. through error. the daimons, like everything else. f.ill into srrife:

'12..

He wanders from the bleued on" for three ti mes coundas yean, being born throughout the time u all kirKh of monal forms. exchanging one hard way of life for another. For the force of fire pursues him imo sea, :l.nd sea. spits him OUt onto ea.rth's sumee. eanh CUtS him into the nys of bluing sun. and sun into the eddies of air; one takes him from another. and all :l.bhor him. ( DII 5; ' 107, p. 170) Empedocles has discovered himself to be one such f.illen daimon: '"I roo am now one of these, an exile from the gods and a wanderer. luving put my trUSt in raving strife" (Ons; '107. p, 2.70), For this reason, he is now a mon.a1 man. JUSt as before he has been various other morta.l crearures: '"For before now I have been at some time boy and girl. bush, bird. and a mute fish in the sea" (0111; #1 01, p. 161). Empedocles himself, then. is striving to reachieve (he divine understanding of the daimon. just as all humans should do.

You willitam remedies for iUs and help against old age. since for you alone shall I accomplish all these things. You will ched the force of tirdeu wind.. which sweep over land and destroy fidds with their blasts: and again. if you wish, you will restore compauuing breezc:s. After bbd! rain you will bring dry weather in seuon for men. and too afrer summer dryness you will bting nee-nourilhing showen (which live in air). and you will lead from H:l.des the life-force of a dea.d man. ( DII5; '10"], p. 170) Overall, then. in direct o pposirion ro rhe claims of a separation between humans and gods. Empedodes proposed a cosmology in which a basic substrate unites all things. Moreover, he defined thoughr as divine and as thus potentially capable of connolling narural processes themselves. As such. he denied the theistic conceptions on which the dominant sacrificial activities of hill day were based. For Empedocles, sacrifice was wrong because it involved a destruction of what is inherenrly linked. and it was unnecessary anyway because humans. properly cultivated, can aru..in powers over natural phenomena on their own. Empedodes was thus substiruting for the religious practices of the day a new regimen whose followers would no longer supplicate the gods but would. ultimuely. become divine. This regimen. in short. was being proposed in full opposition to rhe civic culture of the day. These anempu to propose methods of self-diviniution became increasingly important during the fifth and fourth cenruritS BC. Plato. for one, appropriated and reworked such ideas in his formulation of the academy. an institution in which disciples would be trained in a rigorous process of selfcultivation. As he argues in (he T imlUuJ. ex:plicirly appealing to a vocabulary of the daimon: As concerning the most sovereign form of soul in us we must conceive th:l.t hea.ven hu given it to each m:l.n as a guiding cLaimon-that p:!.n which we uy dwdls in the summit of our body and lifts us from tanh toward our cdestial affiniry.like a plant whose roots art not in eanh, but in the heaven•. u Plato's ultimate c.all, of course. was for those who underwent such selfcultivation [0 lead the state. 29 .8. Ti""'r~1 90'1: in Plalo', T,marul, p. U4. ~9. The argument is bid out mOn clearly in the

Rtp~Wic.

GAINING THE P OW6RS OF SPIRITS

GAINING THE POWEkS OF SPIRITS

lr is beyond the bounds of this ch:lprer to trace the ways that such ideas were developed and reformulated in the later Greek tradition. Suffice it to say here chat these claims of self-divinization became a crucial aspect of early Greek philosophy, which in pan expLains the uneasy rebrion that philosophers had with the polis culture of their day. This historical explanation for the emergence of self-diviniurion movements in Greece is, I think. more convincing than the shamanism hypothesis offered by Dodds. As Bremmer has noted, there are significmr problems with the hypothesis itself. there is no evidence of contact in Greece with shamanistic currents among the Scythians, ancl, indeed, chere is no evidence that shamanistic ide:a.s of this sort existed among the Scythians at all Moreover, Dodds's acrempt to interpret the philosophers in question according to a shamanistic vision lead.~ ro forced readings. For example, Empedocles does not discuss shamanic spirit journeys, JO and, although Empedocles does posit a dualism of body and spirit, his ultimate position on ehe cosmos is monistic. Far more significant for my argument, however, is that Dodds is mistaken in trying ro use diffusion as an explanatory principle. Even if evidence for diffusion existed. the basic questions that need to be asked are: What claims were figures like the Orphics, Empedocles, PlatO, and Aristode making. Why were they making them, and What were the implications of such claims~ These questions can be answered only through a historical analysis of early Greek cultures, not through a purported diffusion from Scythia. I have therefore situated these figures in their historical context, have seen their claims of self-divinization in relation to an ongoing debate, and have shown how and why they were responding to the ritual specialists, as we" as the entire polis organization, of the day.

mOnistic system. In other words, the eype of cosmological system that Empedocles was presenting in opposition to the dominant views of the time in early Greece would be, if Chang is right, a starring assumption in early China. Indeed, one could go a seep further and argue that some of what we have seen in Empedocles might support Chang's views concerning shamanism. With a few revisions, it could even be portrayed as supporting Dodds's hypothesis as weU. If Empedocles is a monisric, rather than a dualistic, thinker, then monistic notions of the cosmos might be linked with shamanism, and monism may have come to Greece only when shamanism entered through diffusion: because of irs continuing shamanistic foundations, Chinese civiliZation adhered to a monistic cosmology as an assumption, whereas Greece developed this idea only when it became influenced from outside by shamanism. Thus, both Chang's thesis that shamanism should be associated with a monistic cosmos and Dodds's thesis that Empedocles was influenced by shamanistic currents from Central Asia would be confirmed. As the analyses in this chaprer and the preceding one have shown, both hypotheses are unconvincing. In this chapter I will quescion any linkage between monisric notions and shamanism and will argue that, in both China and Greece, monistic notions emerged at {he same time as claims of selfdivination-of rhe abiliey of humans co become like spirits-and that this occurred in opposition to the ritual specialisrs of the day. I will argue, in other words, that notions of monism and of rhe continuiey of the human and divine realms were not foundational in early China bur were, rather, as in Greece, consciously formulated ideas designed to critique beliefs and practices dominant at the rime. The fact that some of these cosmological notions became dominant at the imperial COUrt during rhe H an should not mislead us into thinking they were common assumptions in the pre-imperial periods. Instead, these cosmological notions grew OUt of a debare not unlike that which developed in early Greece. This is not to say, of course, that the positions raken within the twO cultures were identical or that me course of me debates was similar. My argument is, rather, thar the debates are comparable in terms of the motivating concerns and tensions. The interesting issue from a comparative perspective lies in discovering how and why rhe debates worked our as they did in the two cultures.

94

Comparing China and Greece In curning co China, one might at first think that we confront a culture due witnessed no comparable debate concerning gods and humans. If K. C. Chang is correct, one would not expect a debate about the relationship between humans and spirits in early China. On the contrary, one would expeCt that spirits, like humans, would be conceptualized as part of a larger

lO. For .pirit jourm:yJ, see Ch~ptcr s of this book.

"

,.

GAIN ING THB POWERS OF SPIR ITS

GAINING THB POWERS OF SPIRITS

Humans and Gods in Early China

These new cosmologicod norions developed in reaction (O me religious and political contexts of early China. lI The first point to emphasize is the degrce [0 which. JUSt as in early Greece, a highly theistic vision of the world conrinucd to pervade elite religious activities throughour rhe period discussed in this book. Although Mote admiu chat «it is true that in the vulg.arized ver-

sions of this ruher philosophical conception [of naturalisml . spirirs sometimes began to resemble 'gods:- l l I would argue that such norions were nor vulgarizations o f a more pervasive naturalistic o rientoltion. On the contrary.

many of the religious orienu.tions seen in the Bronze Age continued thro ugh the Warring States period. Crucial [0 this cosmology was the norton that natura] phenomena were governed by distinct, active deities. One example among many can be found in the ~Ji f.( chaptet of the Liji: The mounujru, foresn, rivers, valleys, and hills that can send out clouds, make wind and rain, and cause to appear Strange phenomena are called spirits (shtn). He who possesses all under heaven sacriflces to the hundred spirits.)) Natura.! pheno mena. the text is claiming. are under the direct control of particular spirits. to whom the ruler must make continual sacrifices. And since natural phenomena were directly controlled by spirits-and porentiaUy fickle spirits at that-a great deal of religious activiry during the Warring Srares accordingly was devoted to charring which spirits controlled which domain of power. understanding their intentions through divinarion. and influencing them with sacrifices. It is in this context. for example, thar we should understand claims such as thou found in the Zuothuan thar one of [he civUizing acts ofYu consisted of casting cauldrons with images of the spirits. an act that allowed the people to ~know the spirits.-:H Similarly. the "Wuzang shanjing~ section of the Shanhaijing contains an ahaustive description of. among other things. the various spirits of each mountain and the particular powers that each posUSKS. A rypical passage reads: ~ M for the

l l. For an a tellerJI diJcumon of early Chinese reUgiow ~ic~. sec Poo, I" St4rdt ofPtr. Wdf4rt.

~",d

)l.

Moce, IlIldl«lu.u FDund.iliolU o/Oi...., p. 17.

l).

Up tht"oi, "Ji f.r,:

46.).1.

l4. o.w",iw ZwnJ1
97

appearance of their (i.e., these mounrains') spirits, they all have a human body and sheep horns. In sacrifices to them, we one sheep and, for grun offerings, use millet. These are the spirits. When they appear, t he wind and rainwater make destruction: l5 The text then e:rr::plains the types of sacrifices mar dissuade these particuW spirits from causing desrrucrive winds and runs. Both of theu texts make an argument for rulership through a control of local spirits: by gaining powers oller enough divinities. the ruler can bring order to the world.)6 Given the dominance of such notions, it is not surprising that sclleral texts from thu period present critical responses to the ritual specialists in charge of dealing with t hese spirits. I discuss four of these textS here: t he Lull]u, early chlpters from me Mohists, the ~Chu yu, ria" chapter of the GuO]U, and the '"Neiye~ chapter of the GUGllzi.

Heaven and Man in the Lunyu One of the most ofren-quoted passlges from the Lun]u is: -Fan Chi asked about knowledge. The master said, 'To work on behalf of what is proper for the people, to be reverent to the ghosts and spiritS and yet keep them at a distance, this can be called knowledge'" (6/:1.:1.). Although Confucius is often presented, at least in the ~religion to philosophy· framework. as marking a shift away from ·superstition" and toward ~rationalism,~J7 Confucius was not claiming that spirits do not exise, Indeed, he explicitly called on people to be reverent toward them. His point is, rather, to keep them at a distance and to focus on the human realm.l& It is within this context that we should understand Confucius' statements lbout spirits. As his disciples claimed: "He sacrificed as if present. He sacrificed to the spirits as if the spirits were present. The master said, 'If r do not participate in the sacrifice, it is as if f d id not sacrifice'~ (3/1:1.). The passage is )S. Shto..s...;ji"t".ul.u, "Dongshan jing: SBBY. 4.7b. For a discunion ofl~ tau,"" Huper, "A ChineK Dtmonography: p. 479: mel Necdlwn,Srit>lct • ..J Ciri40tioJl iN eli....,): SO). )7. See, e.g., Fung,. A HmoI'] o/Q,j_ Pb~pbJ. I: sI. lS. 'Confucius" here refen nO\: to some historical ConJUciw but to a compoaite figure conJtrutfcO from lhe LU"Jw whose views arc repreKntafive of a ct:rtain
AM/rd •.

,8

GAINING THE POWERS OF SPIRITS

GA ININ G THE POWERS OF SPIRITS

a critique of contemporary s.acrificw practice, in which one engaged a rimal

Confucius said, "As for the gencleman, [here are three [hings he e$teetn$. He e$' teems me mandate of Huven, he esteems grUt men, and he esteems the words of uge$. A pcny man, not understanding the mandate of Huven. dOe$ not esteem it; he is disre$pectful t(l grUt men, and he ridicule$ the words of sage$." (16/8)

specialist to perform sacrifices properly. The goal of such sacrifices was to fnlnsforrn the spirits so that they would act on behalf of humanicy. Confucius' argument is that one should flXUS instead on the human realm: the point of sacrifice is not to persuade the spirits but to transform the humm performing the ritual Accordingly, one must perform the act oneself, and one must do so even though the spirits mly nor be present during the ritual. This position does not deny mat spirits act in the world. Rather, it argues 2gainsr the view that humans should attempt to conrrol the spirits with sacrifices: the goal should be self-transformation. Spirits, therefore. should not be the object of our concern: "The master did not speak of abnormalities (guai ~), force, disorder, or spirits (?IlI). Here again, there is no claim that the items on this list do not exist. Nor is there any claim that they are insignificant. Clearly, disorder and force are subjects of obvious concern. The power of the passage, therefore, lies precisely in the implication that for most people these topics w(luld usually be objects of great concern, yet Confucius did not speak of them at all. The sense running throughout these passages is that spirits do have great potency, but humans should not speak of them, should avoid worrying about them, and should perform ritual actions not to influence them but to cultivate themselves. And yet one musr still revere them. Indeed, the highest way to revere them is precisely not to try to influence them. In many ways this position heightens the tensions noted in Chapter I. In the Western Zhou, a proper pattern for human life was emphasized. Heaven and the other spirits sometimes supported rhis pattern; at other times they did not. But ritual specialists could, to a limited extent, keep the divine powers within this pattern. But Confucius, by decrying the instrumental use of sacrifices by ritual specialists, denied the powers thar were used in the Bronze Age to mollify divine forces and to make them work for the living. Instead, he urged that we simply cultivate ourselves and accept whatever the divine powers do. This stance explains both the reverence thar Confucius expressed toward Heaven, the greatest of the divine powers, as well as his view that we must not attempt to influence Heaven but accept whatever Heaven sends at us. Thus, for example, Confucius strongly embraced the idea that humans must follow the mandate of Heaven. Indeed, esteeming the mandate of Heaven was one point of difference between a gendeman and a lesser man: M

99

And Confucius famously defined understanding the mandate of Heaven as one of the achievements of his life: The maner said, "At age fifteen, I Set my imenc on studying; at thiny I established mysdf; at fony 1 was no longer dduded; at fifty I understood the mandate of Huven; at sixty my e:u accorded; at seventy I followed what my hean desi red with· out transgression." (a/4) For Confucius, however, the mandate of Heaven was not a simple granting of moral norms, nor did it involve rewarding the worthy or punishing the unworthy. Although Sima Qian would later, in his biography of Bo Yi and Shu Q i/ 9 critique Confucius for believing that the good are rewarded and the bad punished, Confucius in fact held no such position. Indeed, for Confucius. [he mandate of Heaven appeared to involve no ethical calculus whatsoever, lnd this presumably is a pan of why it took Confucius until age fifty to understand it. For example, when his flvorite disciple, Yan Hui, died young. Confucius exclaimed, "AW. Heaven is destroying me! Heaven is destroying me!" There is no sense here that Yan Hui had done anything to deserve dying young. On the contrary, Confucius' response was to rail at Heaven, since it is H eaven th2t controls the mandate.

Ji

Kangzi uked, "Of your disciples, who loved learning:'" Confucius responded, -rherc was Yan Hui who loved brning. Unf(lnunardy he hld a shonened man· date, and he died. Now there is no one." {1I/7)<40 What is mandated is under the control of Heaven. and there is no ethical calculus involved. Indeed, Confucius often emphasized the degree to which events are oue of the control of humans. When a certain Gongbo Liao defamed someone, and Zifu Jingbo asked Confucius if he should have Gongbo Liao killed, Confucius responded: "If the Wly is going to be put into practice. it is mandated (ming). If ir is going to be discarded, that tOO is mandated. What does Gongbo Liao have to do with what is mandated?" (14136). Even the question 3\/. Shiji, 11o.:m4-1S· 4 (1. A .ill\il"I{~{cmcm

1ppc.l1r. in 6IJ·

GAINING THB P O W E R S O f SPI RITS

G"INING T HE POW E RS OF SPI R ITS

of whether the: Way will prc:v.til is out of human hands: humans can put the: way into practice: only if H eaven wishes them to. ru with Confucius' State:· ments about his best disciple dying young. the: ;arrirudc: here: is simply rh:u o ne: must accept what Heaven has orcbinc:d. Nonetheless. Confucius held strongly to the view rh2[ no one should resent Heaven:

Such.a posirion is a variant ofrhe tensions present in t he Western Zhou. H e.aven is revered. and both living up to:and accepting what Heaven ordains are man's highest goals. But since. in Confucius' view, man cannot influence Heaven through s.acrif'ices (or, to be more explicit, through sacrificing to the spiriu who then perition Heaven on behalf of the living). man must simply cultiv.ate himself and accept wh.atever He.aven does.~t

'00

The: master uid, "No o ne underltand, me." Zigong asked., "What does it mean to say no one underltllnw you?" The master replied.. 1 do not [csen~ Heaven nor beat a grudge apnsc man. J study here and rea<:h co what is above. Only Heaven understands me.: (1"./)5)

Indeed. Confucius believed that humm culrure itself derives in p2rt from Heaven and ugued t hat culruta! patterns emerged when the initial sages modeled themselves on Heaven and then transmitted mose patterns to humanity: The master said: "Great indeed was the rulership of YolO. So majestic-only Heaven is great, and only YOlO modded hi nue1f upon it. So boundless, the people were not able to find a name for it. Majestic were his achievements. IUumious are his par· terned fomu (wtn zhang): (8h9) Heaven is also seen as being responsible for the continuation of these cwrural patterns: When the master was in danger in Kuang. he said: "King Wen has died, but are hU cultural pan:enu (wen) not here:' If Heaven had wanred ro destroy these cultunJ patterns, rhen those who died later would nor have been able to parricipaIe in the cultural patterns, Since Heaven has not destroyed these cultural panenu, what can the people ofKuang do to me:'" (9/s) Heaven is thus granted a normative role. The patterns of human culture (Wtn) emerged from Heaven, and it is Heaven rhat allows those patterns (0 continue. Thus, the parterns that should guide human behavior can be tnlced to Heaven-they are parrerns observed by the sages and brought from H eaven to humanity, H owever, the commands of Heaven do not necessarily involve support for those who follow these patterns. And yet man must not resent Heaven for this and indeed muSt strive (0 understand and even esteem rhese commands.

The Mor.al Cosmos of the Mo hisrs If Confucius responded to the tensions between humans and Heaven by embnlcing them:and d enying che .ability of humans to transform He.aven, the Mohists took the opposite approach:and denied the tensions altogether. For them. Heaven w.as a mor.al deity who acted according to a cle.ar mo rn calcwus: -Heaven desires propriety and detests impropriety.-·2 Accordingly, humans must model t hemselves on H eaven in order to act properly: "The gentlemen who desire to act with propriety must accord with che intent of Heaven" (i ianzhi. xia. ,.na). Moreover, H eaven actively intervenes in h uman affairs to reward t he good .and punish t he bad. If, for example. someone kills an innocent man, H eaven sends down a c.alamity (iianzhi, xia: ,.na-b)• .as do the ghosts .and spirits arrayed below Heaven (-Minggui, xia," ,.lb). Absent here is any sense that eithe r Heaven or the spirits are capricio us. All of them alw.ays act according to a c1e.ar moral calculus. The Mohist .advice to the rulers of the day was thus to simply follow H e.aven. just as, the Mohisu cl.aim, the sage-kings of the paSt did: N

Therefore. in ancienr times t he sage-kings made m.anifesr .and understood whaI Heaven and the gh<»u blCS5 and avoided what Heaven and the ghOlts detest 10 as [0 increase the bcnmtll of all under Heaven and eradi,.are the problenu of all under Heaven. (l'ianVii. :U1ong." 1.6.20) Like Confucius, t he Mohists believed that hwnans must follow the comm.ands of He.aven. but, unlike Confucius, che Mohiscs saw tho,se commands :IS ethical.

~, . FOT a .... n~wh.1t different reading of thue iUlla. I« Ning Chen. 'Confutiui

View of

Fale(Mi"I): ~~ . MOll. "Tiall:~hi. xia: 7.1oa: he~inafier citationl from the Mni are givcn in

the text.

GAINING THE POWERS OF SPIRITS

Indeed, nor only should humans follow the commands of Heaven, but it was Heaven itsc:lf who made kings, duke$, and lords and charged [hem with, first, rewarding the worthy and punishing the wicked and, s«ond, plundering the merais, wood, birds, and beasts and working the five grains, hemp, and silk so as to make the materials for peeple's clothing and food. (-rianzhi, zhong." 7.7a) Heaven instituted the polirical hierarchy and taught rulers how to rule and how to appropriare natural resources for the benefit of humanity. The hierarchy of the human world thus replicates the hierarchy of the cosmos, with the rulers rewarding [he worthy and punishing the unworthy just as Heaven above does. There is no sense here [hat humans. through their sacrifices, are transforming H eaven and the spirit world in order to persuade them to act on behalf of humanity. nor is there any sense that humans are utilizing sacrifices in order to make material resources available for human consumption. On the contrary. the hierarchy of Heaven and the spirits is a given, and that hierarchy is already predisposed to aid humanity. Indeed, it is Heaven that created the kings. and Heaven that directs humanity to appropriate the natural world. It is as if the goal of late Shang sacrifices became the foundation for Mohist thought. Moreover. for the Mohists sacrifices are not cransformative. Instead, rhey are simply a case of humans giving the spirits what the spirits need, just as the spirits give humans What humans need. Ir is with the Mohists, in other words, that one finds the bureaucratic vision of sacrifices thar Keighrlc:y sees in the Shang. The Mohist narrative of the origins of sacrifices makes the point wc:lL The narrative appears in a Mohist argument about the importance of identifying with one's superior. This is true at each level of the hierarchy, all the way up to H eaven. Thus. the argument goes, if one identifies with the ruler but fails to identifY wirh Heaven, then H eaven will send down punishments. To prevent rhis, sacrifices were instituted: Therefore, if it were like this. then Heaven would send down cold and heat without moderation, snow, frost. rain, and dew at the improper rime. the five grains would nor grow, and the six animals would nor prosper.... Therefore, in andent rimes, rhe uge-kin!;$ clarified what Heaven and rhe ghosts desire and avoided what Heaven and the ghOStS detest. They thereby sought to increase rhe benefits of all

(lAIN IN(l THB POWERS OF SPIRITS

. 03

under Heaven and push away the problems of all under Heaven. They thereby led the myriad peeples under Heaven ro purify themsdves, barhe, and make libations and offerings to sacrifice to Heaven and the ghosts. rS hangtong. zhong." 3.Sa-b) Heaven and the ghosts desire sacrifices, and the sage-kings of the paSt therefore instituted them. Thenceforth, ~favors from Heaven and the ghosts could be obtained" ("Shangrong. zhong." 3.Sb), If humans sacrifice properly, then the divine powers will send down blessings. In short. the Mohist view of sacrifices is precisc:ly do ut d~s-precisely rhe view rhat Keighrley and Poo Mu-chou, incorrectly in my opinion. tried to read into Shang sacrifices. Indeed, stories abound in the Moxi about the importance of gauging the correct amount of sacrifices to give in order to receive the proper amount of divine blessings in rerum. As one example among many: The sacrificer of Lu sacrificed one pig and sought one hundred favors from the ghOStS and spirits. Master Mo:ti said to him, -rhis is unacceptable. If you give to others sparingly and yet expect them [in response] to give generously, then they will be afraid of your giving things to them. Now. if you sacrifice one pig and expect one hundred favors from the ghosrs and spirits, then they will be afraid of getting ucrifices of oxen and sheep: ("Luwen: 13.6b) Like Confucius, the Mohists opposed the use of sacrifice to coerce or cransfonn the spirit world. But, unlike Confucius, the Mohists asserted that sacrifices should be used to gain benefits from the spirit world. Not only is it a moral cosmos, but it is also one that operates according to a hierarchical do ut dcs framework. For this reason, the Mohists argued strongly against the 4J notion of fate. Since the highest power, Heaven, is moral, the only issue is whether the ruler models himself on Heaven and actS properly to those below. If he does, there will be order; if he does not, H eaven will send down punishments. When men of propriety are above, all under Heaven wi!! be ordered. The High God. as well a.s the ghOSts and spirits of the mountains and streams. will have their master of sacrifices, and the myriad peoples will r«eive great benefits. ("Ftiming. shang." 9.3a) Sacrifice, in short, is simply a part of the proper hierarchical functioning of the cosmos. Ir is not that sacrifices rransfonn the spirits; rather. humans give 4]. Stt the "Feinting" chapter,.;r.lI of whkh. a.s their ririe implies, contain lengthy critiques of the notion oHatt.

GAINING THE POWERS OF SPIRITS

GA I NING THB POWI!RS OF SPIR I TS

their supenors what they need. Indeed, when the Mohists argue that Heaven loves universally, they even give as one of their examples t he ncr that Heaven accepts sacrifices nom all-and, ifhe accepts sacrifices from all, he will send down blessings co all (M Tianzhi, ria, 7.1I.a). Like Confucius, the Mohists deny that s.acrifices can transfonn He.aven .and the spirits. But, for Confucius this meant that one simply h.ad to .accept the capriciousness of those powers. For the Mohists, on the contrary, it is unnecessary to tr.ansfonn H eaven or in any way .aCt to coer-ee it; Heaven is explicitly the source of propriety, and, indeed, o f all things th.at the Mohists deem good. And hum.ans .are simply called on to follow He.aven's comm.anw .and thus .achieve the order th.at H eaven has made possible. For the Mohists, the cosmos is moral .and is controlled by.a mor.al deity and a mor.al pantheon of spirits, and humans should simply submit themselves to that deity in order to .achieve a proper order, The tensions between humanity .and divine powers .are denied by arguing th.at H eaven and the spirits are not capricious and .alre.ady act on behalf ofhumaniry, .and that the cosmos is alread y hier.archically structured .and therefore not in need of human sacrifices to so order it. All humans need to do is follow the commands of He.aven, and those comm.ands will.always lead them properly,

would descend into them. The possessors of such powers were, if men, called xi (shamans), and, if women, WII (shamane5$es). It is they who supervised the positions of the .pirits at the ceremonies, sacrificed to them. and otherwise handled rdigioU$ matters. As a consequence, the spheres of the divine and the profane were kept disrinct. The spirits sene down blessings on the people, and accepted from them their offerings. There were no natural calamities.""

W

Separating Humans and Spirits and Dividing H eaven M and Earth: The ~Chu yu, xia C hapter of t he Guoyu Confucius and the Mohists, .albeit for different reasons, rejected the use of sacrifices to coerce and transform t he divine re.alm, but others attempted to define more carefully the relations th.at ritual specialists should maintain with the spirits. A de.at ex.ample of t his can be found in the MCh u yu, xia chapter of the Guoyu, which critiques its own .age by looking back to an earlier period when ritu.al specialists beh.aved properly. This section indudes .a pass.age widely cited in rhe sinologic.al literature on shamanism. Indeed, K. C. Chang's argument for shamanism in early China is based to a significant degree on his reading of this p:mage. Ch.ang followed Derk Bodde's paraphrase: W

Anciencly, men and spirits did not intermingle. At that time there were ceruin persons who were so perspicacious, single-minded, and reverential that their understanding enabled them to make meaningful colladon of what lies above and below, and thei r insight to illumine what is distant and profound. Therefore the Ipirit.

Chang calls this -the most import.ant textual refe rence to shamanism in ancient China. w4S Fung Yu-lan understood this passage in a similar way. H owever, Fungo reading the passage according to his gener.al Mreligion to philosoph( argument, denigr;tced the link belWeen humans and gods t hat C hang celebrated: What is said here shows in a general way the forms of superstition of the early Chinese. From the faa that sorcerers and witches were considered necessary to regulate the dwelling pla.:es, positions at the sacrifices, and order of precedence of me spirits. we may see how numerous these spirits were. The faa that the spirits were supposed to be able to bestow happiness, receive sacrifices, and to enter into human beings. shows rhar rhey were regarded as anth ropomorphic beings. And the stare_ ments that "people and spiries were confusedly mingled," ' people and spirits hdd the same position," and "the spirits followed the custonu of the people; show us that rhe ,acrions of the spirits were looked upon as being quite indistinguishable from those of human beings. The Chinese of that: time were superstitious and ignorant; they had rdigious ideas but no philosophy; so thar the rdigious ide2$ and spirin which they believed in were exaccly like those of the Greeks. 46 I will follow David Keighdey in arguing that the passage in nCt has litde to do with shamanism.of1 Indeed, f.u from referring to a mixing of humans and spirirs, the text is explicitly oriented toward defining humans and spirits as, normatively. separate. Like Pindar, the writers of this text were arguing against any attempt to weaken the boundary belWeen humans and spirits. The text revolves .around King Z hao ofChu (r. 515-489 Be) and his minister Guan Yifu: 44. K. C. Clung. A.rc, Myth, and Ri,ual, p. 44. For Bodde',

par~phrase,

see hi.! "Myths of

Anci<m China; p. l9D. 4S. K. C. Chang. A.rc, Myth. ~nd Ri/wRI, p. 4S. 46. Fung. A HiIIO'1 ojo,i"tlt PhilolQphy, I' lj-l4.

Keiglllky, -Sh~maniJm, Death, and ehe Ancestors: pp. hl-;l4. The pmicular PlS' in queldon here is diacuned in detail in Keighdey's unpublished 'Shamanism in G"ol"~ A Tale of l he,;j and IIIW : 41.

u~

.06

.07

GAINING TH E POWIIRS OF SPIRITS

G" ININ G THE POWIIRS OF SPI RI TS

King Zhao aliked. Gum Yi(u: "What does the Zhoushu m~ when it refen [0 Chong and Li causing HClI.ven and Earth to have no communication? If this had nor happened. would the people be able to :ucend to Huven:'"i.!

:l.ble ro glorify what was distant :l.nd display what was bright; thei r dC:l.r-sigh cedness was able to g1orilj> and iIlumin:l.[e ir; [heir keen hC:l.ring was able to listen :l.nd discern it. As such, the illuminated spirits descended to them.5I As regards males, they were cilled xi Im.ale ritu.al specialisrs]; as regards women, chey were c.alled wu Ifem.ale riru.al speci.alistsJ. They were employed in order to regulate the placement, positions, precedence, and ranks of the spirits and to prepare the sacrifici.al victims, vessds, and season.al garments. (18.la)

The precise reference here is unclear. H owever, the "Lii xing~ chapter of the Shangshll mentions the activities orChong and Li in its description of the creation of punishments by the San Miao. -w Oi, heeding the cries of the people, decided [0 intervene:

The ritual specialists were rectified and proper, and the spirits thus deThose who were oppressed :md terrified and hcing execudon announced thei r innocence [0 the powers above. The high Oi surveyed the people. but there wu no fragrant vil'fUc, and the punishments sem OUt a smell thac was rank. The august OJ pitied ilI1d fde com~sion for chose among the multitudes who, though innocent, were facing execution. He requited the oppressors with terror and puc an end ro the Miilo people so chac they hOld no descendiinrs. He thereupo n ord ered Chong and Li co break the communication between Heaven and Earth so [hat rhere would be no more descending and reaching up. 50

scended to accept t heir sacrifices. The duties of these ritual specialists involved granting spirits their proper rank and precedence. Guan Yifu's argument parallels the views ascribed to ritual specialists in the S hang and early

The passage clearly represents the interruption of communicacion berween Heaven and Earth as a good thing: Di did so in order (0 establish a proper hierarchy. The sense would appear to be that the San Miao, in creating punishments, had usurped privileges that belonged to (he god alone.

The people and spirits had different tasks. These were respected :l.nd not [cal1llgressed. Thus, the spirits sent rhem good hacve.us, and the people used che produce to sacrifice. Disasters did not come, and chere were no deficiencies in whae they sought for use. (18.Lb-u)

The San Miao, in shon, had transgressed the limits of what is permitted for humans.

The ritual specialists regulated (he positions of m e spirits correc tly, and the sp irits in turn granted good harvests. The people (hen used t he produces of the harvest to sacrifice to the spirits. In shon, because the ritual specialists observed their appropriate tasks, the worlds of humans and spirits were cor-

In the -Chu yu- chapter, however, King Zhao asks if the p assage perhaps had th e opposite m eaning: mat the breaking of communication berween Heaven and Eanh was now preventing humans from ascending ro th e heavens. Guan Yifu immediately opposes such a reading: -rhis is not what it means. In ancient times, the people and me spirits did not mix- (IS.la). P eople and spirits were separated in antiquity, and, as Guan YiFu explains, a proper ritual separation was maintained berween them. More specifically, ritual specialists were responsible for maintaining the proper sacrifices; Those among [he people whose essence was bright and never divided and who were able (0 be proper, reverential, correct, and recrified, their wisdom wu capable of comparing the propriety of whar was above and whac wal below; thei r sagacity wa.s

43. GU'Ju, "Chu yu, xi>.; ,8.,~; hereimher cited in the text. 49· For a derailed discuuion of the "w xing" chapcer, lee my AmW ....lmct "/emHio", cru.p. ,. so. ss","gshw zht"gyi, U xing." 19.Lob-nb.

Zhou tens (see C hapter I): the duty of such specialists was to o rder the spirits and grant chem their proper posicion. Because the ritual specialists performed eheir duties correctly, the tasks of humans and spirits we re de fined properly:

reedy demarcated and no disasters occurred. Clearly, th is is tar removed from shamanism. The text is not describing (he d escent of spirits into humans, and its only reference to humans ascending is a negative one: it argues against any such arrempt. Contrary to C hang's interpretation, th e ten is claiming that spirits and humans sh ould be separated and placed within a ptoper hierarc hy of functions. Wu here thus seems best translared as -riruai speci.alists-; I would agree with Mair's argument (see pp. 84-86) that t he wu are not shamans at aU.

5'. This is tnc p.a..age that BOOde read as "tnc spirin would descend into tncm" and. !ru.t ClUIng used to build his argument for shamanism. In f~,t, however, the wordingp"gvx simply meaN "to desc~nd and arrive" -which is exactly what spiriu are supposed to do when eff«live rilual'p«ialil:u enlice the", with tnc proper blmdishmenu.

' 08

GAINING THB P OWBRS OF SPIRITS

GAINING THE POW ERS OF S PIRI TS

Gwn Yifu cominues: When it came to the declining period of Shao Hao, [he Jill Li brought disorder to the power (de). The people and spirirs were mixed up. Things could not be assigned to their proper caregorie$. People made their own offerings, and each f2mily had a ritual speciali$[ (wu) and a scribe.. The re was no demand for substance. The people exhausted themsdves in sacrifices and rer knew no good fOrTUne.. They nude offerings without proper moderation. The people and the spirits occupied [he same posi· don. The people profaned the proper covenants. There was ntidlsr respect nor rev· erence.. The spiritS had improper intimacy with the people; they did not purify their behavior. Bou ntiful harvests were not sent down, and there was no produce for use in making offerings. Misfortunes and disasters repe.ned.ly C:lme. No one used up their 'Ii. ([S.n) The ritu al differentiuion that had characterized ehe earlier per iod broke down, and humans and spirits became mixed. Each family employed its own ritual specialis t, and the order and precedence of the offe rings collapsed. Even though sacrifices increased, good harvests ended and disasters arose.

With the Zhou, So XiuJU of Cheng was their descendant. In the rime of King Xuan, he Ion his office and became part of the Sima clan. E$teeming his ancestors u spirits so as co hold the awe of the people, he said: "Chong truly raised heaven, and Li truly lowered. Earth: (IS.lb) But, with the d ecline of the Zhou, the proper demarcation of Heaven and Earth was lost again: But when chey mer the disorders of chis age, none was able to withstand it. If such had not been the case, then Heaven and Earch would be complete and not .altering. How can they be joined together? (Is.lb) The implicarion is t hat th e problem confron ting G uan Yifu and his contemporaries was the loss of the proper distinction between H eaven and Earth. Far from being a shamanistic text, the "Chu yu, xia" is a call for a ritual separatio n of h umans and spirits and a critique of any intermingling of th e two. T he goal is harmony through ritual separation. The text is defending a position much closer to that of Pin dar.

When Z huan X u took power, the situation was finally rectified: Zhuan Xu succeeded. him (Shao Hao]. He the reupon ordered Chong. rhe rectifier of the 50uch, to supervise Heaven and thereby usemble rhe spi ries. He ordered Li, the rectifier of fi re, ro supervise EarTh and thereby usemble the people. He made them revive [he old rules. There were no more mutu.al usurparioIl$ and encroachments. This is what wu meant by breaking [he communication between Heaven and Earth. ([s.n)

Becoming Like a Spirit:

The "Neiye" C hapte r of the Guanzi

If the LllnJIl reveals a concern with keep ing spirits at a disrance, if the M ohists asse rted an absolute, pregiven hie ra rchy of h umans and spirits, and if the "Chu yu, xia" chap ter represenrs an arrempt to maintain a ritual separacion of humans and spirits, the "Neiye" chapter of the Gllan~i is representative of attemprs to break down the ba rriers between humans and spirits al-

When Chong and Li were assigned t he tasks of supervising Heaven and Earth, respectively, each was demarcated prope rly, and th is, Guan Yifu argues, was

together. The "Neiye," chapter 49 of the

the meaning of breaking the communication between H eaven and Earth. Unlike King Z hao, Guan Yifu clearly sees this rupture as a good thing.

three inrerreiated terms: qi, essence (jing m), and spirit (JMn). Qi, which I here leave untransiared, is the en ergy and substance of all things. In its m ost S refined form, qi becomes essence: "Essence is the essence of qi: ) Spirit is then defined as a refined qi as we ll; as we shall see, it becomes another name

A similar problem arose when t he San Miao appeared, but Yao was able to rectify things by supporting the descendants of C h ong and Li: After this, rhe San Miarl restored the power of the Jiu Li. Yao turned again [0 nurturing the descendants of Chong and Li. Those who had noc forgotten the old were made to revive their regularing. From char point, down to the Xia and Shang, the Chong and Li families accordingl y placed Heaven and Earth in order and disdnguished their proper spheres of management. (IS.n-b) This situation contin ued into ehe Zho u dynasty:

Guan;:i, S2 builds its argumen t around

in this text for essential qi. Sl. For an excelkm transbrion and analysis of the "Nciye," see ROl h, Origindl TdO. Stt also III( invaluable diKuuiotU by Roth, "P~ychol"llY and Sdf-Cultiv:ltion in IWly Taoini<: Thought": and Graham, Disputm of the TdO, pp. lOG-lOS. Aho utremdy hdpfuJ is Qiu Xigui, "Jixia Oaojia jingqi .huo de yanjiu : For a discussion of lhe dating of the "Neiye: see ROlh, Oriti",,1 T~o, pp. 1]-)0: idem, "Redaction Criti<:ism and the Early H istory of Taoism: pp. J.+17:

and Rickett, G"""t;, 1: )1-)9. U. GIIQ"~;, "Nciye,' 16.ab: l",r.inaEtcr circd in the rext.

no

OAININO THB POWBRS OF SPI RITS

G A IN ING THI! POWBRS Of SPIR I TS

The text opens up with one of irs more provocative renderings of this argument:

Doing so will allow him to have a settled heart and ul timately become a resting place for essence:

A. for the cuence (ji",) of all rhings (WIll, it is this due is life. Bdow it generates the five grains; 3bovc it becomes the arrayed stars. When it floatS between Haven and Earth, we call it ghom and spirits; when it is stored. within :l penon's chest. we call tlut penon a sage. ([6.1.1.)

Only he who is capable of being co rrect and still is capable of being setded.. Ifhe has a settled mind within, ears and eyes that are keen of hearing and .ight. and four lim!» that are durable and smlng. then he can be the resting place of the essence. Essence is the e.uence of f. When the ~j fonows the Way, [here is life. When there is life. mere is thought. When there is thought, there is knowledge. When there is knowledge. one Stops. In all cases, Ihe fotnu of the mind are such t hat transgressive knowledge leads to a 1051 of life. (16.ab)

& the life force, essence generates ill things on C2rth and in the heavens. Spirits are simply the essence flo2ting between Heaven and Earth. and sages arc those who have such essence within. H um2n sages, in orner words. canrain within t hemselves t he same essence found in spirits. Indeed. the only significant difference between humans and spirits is that spirits are pure essence (and thus float between Heaven and E2rth), whereas

humans are a mix of essence :and form: As for the birth of humans: H eaven brings forth the essence, and Earth brings forth the form. They combine these to make humans. When rhey harmonize, there is life: when they do not, there is not life. If we examine the way of harmony, its essence cannot be seen. its signs cannor be d a.uified. When there are :urangemenr and regularion in the mind, this rhereby gives long life. Ifharred and anger lose their measure, one should make a plan for them. Moderate the five desi res. and expel the [We evih. If one is not joyous and nor angry, balance and correcmess fills the chest. (16.sb) Humans thus occupy a unique place in the cosmos because they combined the essenCe received nom H eaven and form received from Earth. By hanna-nizing these, hu mans can attain longevity. Harmonizing the essence and form requires one to live pro perly with Heaven and Ea rth: Heaven values correa:nesl; Eart h values levdness; man values calmness and srillness. Spring. autumn, wintet', and summer are the Stalons of Heaven. MountaiN, hills, srreanu, and valleya are the branches of Earth. Happiness. anger, taking. and giving are the $Chema of man. For this rtalon. rhe liage altUS with the seasons but is not rraNformed. follows things bur is not changed.. (16.ab) The sage must recognize the proper values of Heaven. Earth, and mancorrectness. levelness. and stillness. respectively. The sage must be still and not be transformed o r changed by the alterations of Heavenly seasons. the shifts in the earthly landscape, and the schemes of other humans.

'"

By becoming senled. the sage is able to develop a fonn t hat an bring essence to rest within himself. This grantS him life and knowledge. The concern o f the aumors thus becomes clear. The problem is that o ur essence tends to dissipate nom our fonn because of t he changes, alterations, and schemes of Heaven, Earth. and man. Our goal, therefore, should be to keep our essence within our form and thus maintain the proper balance of Heaven and Earth within us. Essence is the most refined state of ~i. Mo reover, qi that follows th e Way allows for life- the very thing said about esscnce. T he implicatio n is that one refines one's qi by following the proper Way. If this is done. one's fonn becomes correct. on e obtains longevity. and one's actions meet with success: The Way is rhaI about which che mourh cannot speak. (he eye cannot see, Ihe ear cannot hear. It is rhar with which one cultivates the mind and co rrects the form. If men lose it. they die; if they obtain it, they live. If. in pcrfomung t:uks, [rhe Way] is lost. one will fail; iEir is obtained. rhe ta.sb will be completed. (16.aa-b) To do th is, howeve r, the Way itself must be brough t to rest, since it. tOO, hu no fixed place. Thus. o ne must render one's mind srill and bring one'S qi into accord with the nonnative panem (Ii): ~ow, the Way is without a fixed place, b ur a good mind will bring it to test and ate for it. If th e m ind is still and (he qi panemed (Ii), the Way can the reupon be brought to a Stop· (16.u). O ne's goal is to b ring the Way to rest within one's fonn. Here again. change and movement arc dangers, and lo ngevity rests with stillness. H owever, insofar as the Way 61ls all under Heaven, he who can bring it to rest within himself gains access to t he entire cosmos: The Way fills all under H eaven. It is everywhere th ar people reside, but people are unable to undersrand. Wirh rhe liberation (jir M) of (he one word. one explores

..,

GA I NING THB POWBR.S OF SPIRITS

GAIN ING THE POWBRS 01' SP I P.lTS

{(htJ) Heaven above, reaches to Earrh below, and encircles and fill.s [he nine regions.

ocean and constricted as if residing in rhe seW (16.la). T he claim again is not rhar humans acrw.lly ascend to H eaven and encompass distant regions (claims, as we will scc, that were indeed made late r within comparable

(16.3b.)

The Way pervldes everything. Accordingly. he who can grasp it with the one word (i.e., me "'Way,,) can be liberated and is able [0 explore Heaven and Earth and fill [he world. The daim here is not that [he adept acrual.J.y explores the cosmos in person; the poim is r;uher du[ the "dept can gain ,hese powers

by gruping the one word that perv2des the cosmos. As the rext

cJ:plic.ues:

"J

frameworks). The argument is rarher rhar qi is whar enables humans to have access, through something within themselves, [0 the rest of the cosmos. And, since qi thus pervades the cosmos, an understanding of it allows me adept [0 nuke all under Heaven submit: ~ewa rds arc not sufficient to encourage goodness, and punishments arc nor sufficient to correct the transgressive. When awareness of the qi is obuined. ,,11 under Huven will submit.

WJw: doa it mean to be libe rated by it? It resides in the stability of the mind.. If one's mind is regulated, onls senses ate thereby regulated. If onc's mind is srabiliud, one's lelUes are thereby stabilized. What regulate! them is the mind. and what In_ bilizes them is the mind. The mind therefore stores the mind; within the mind there is also a mind. In this mind of the mind. tones precede wor~. Only after there are [ones are there fornu; only after there are fornu is there the word; only after the word is there comrol; only after there is comrol iJ there regulation. If there is no regulation, there will inevitably be disorder. If there is disorcier, there will be death. (16.]b-4a)

T herefore, this 'Ii cannot be stopped with force, but it can be made to rcst through power (at); it cannOt be called through sound, but it can be wdcomed through musical pitch. Reverently hold W t to it and do not lose it. This we cill ·completing the power: When the power is complete and knowledge emergcs, then the myriad things (W\I) can be fully obtained. (16.la-b)

The process occurs entirely within the adept himself The adept must stabilize h is mind and thereby regulate hiJ senses. The mind within his mind re-

By holding fast to that qi and not letting it escape, one can obt"in the myriad things. Since qi pervades the cosmos and exisu in [he forms of all things, rhe

sponds and hence experiences me inherent resonance that exists in musical tones. Only through this reson;mce can one grasp the one word-that

ability to make the qi rest within oneself gives the adept an ability to control those t h ings. In shon, the monistic cosmos posited by rhe authors allows them to

which pervades everything. And one is mereby liberated.

by grasping that which pervades everything.

Similarly, by obtaining the one word that pervades CIIerything. all under Heaven will submit: If a regulated mind resides within, regulated words will wue from one'l mouth and regulated rasks will be applied [0 men. As such. all under Heaven will be ordered. When the one word U: oba.ined. all under Heaven will submit. When the one word U: determined. all under Heaven will obey. (t6.)a) The one word is the fUlcrum of the cosmo.s. By obtaining the one word, the adept' is ab le to make himself the fUlcrum of the cosmos as well. and all under Heaven will submit itself to him. The author make these same points about qi itself. A proper utilizat ion of qi allows humans co possess within themselves t he same qualities found in the rest of the cosmo.s: -rherefore, the qi of the people is bright as jf ascending to Heaven and dark as if entering into an abyss; vast as if residing in the

When awareness of the mind is settled, all unde r Heaven will obey" (16.4b). Indeed, if one can hold fast to the qi and not let it escape, one gains power over things:

make great clainu for the potential powers of those who follow the tc'achings of the text. Not only is the "dept "ble to transform with the changes of the world w ithout altering his own qi, but he is in her "ble to gain control of t hings: To unify things and be able [ 0 uansform them is called spirit (Jbcn). To unify affain and be able to ...lrer them is cilled cnft. Transforming but not altering the 'Ii, a1eering but not changing one's cnfi-: only the superior man holding (ast to the One is able to do this. By holding Wt to the One and not losing it. he is able to rule over the myriad things. The superior man controll things (shi II1II); he il nO[ controlled by them. He obtains the pattern (Ii) of the One. (16.),,) Since the cosmos is monistic, it follows thu chere is an inherent p"ttem (Ii) to the oneness of the world. If the adept brings his qi into accord with this pattern and holds fast to it, then he can achieve mutery over the t hings {Will thar populace rhe world.

"4

us

GAIN IN Cl THB POWEllS OF SPIRITS

GAIN ING THB P OWBRS OF SPIR I TS

Indeed, he who can fully gain such powers and fill himself with essence, the most refined surc of qi, is able to avoid all disasters and h:um:

Indeed. the text argues, self-cultivation allows the sage to gain the powers of the spirits-Without resorting to the arts of the religious specialists of the day:

When the essence aim. it giva life of itsdf. On the outside. ;a]j will be s([[led and RourUhing. Intemally. one can uore it so thilt it xu as the source of 11 fountain. Floodlike. harmonious, and tranquil. it acu as the depths of the 'Ii, If the dcpdu do nor dry up. the nine apertUres will therrupon open. They are thereby able (0 a· halUt Heaven and Earth and cover the four leu. If within one has no ddusioru. then ouuide there will be no disuters. If the mi nd is complete within, the form will be complete on the outside. One will not encounter Heavenly disuters nor mttt with injuries from others. This person we call [he nge. (16.411)

Since the essence pervades everything. access to it grants me ldcpr fUll powers to penetrate everything. exhaust Heaven and Earth, and avoid disasters. At times, the rexr refers (0 this euence as Mspirit~ (shtn): There is a spirit that of itself resides within the body. at times leaving. at times entering. No one is able to contemplate it. If you lose it, there will be disorder; if you obrain it. there will be order. Carefully clean its resting place, and the essence will of its own enter. Refine your thoughts and contemplate it; make rranquil your memories and bring it to order. Be reverent. generous, dignified, and respectful, and the essence will come and setde.. Obtain it and do not dispense with it. Your ears and eyes will never go astray, and your he:rt will h:ve no other designs. When a correct mind resides within. the myriad things will obtain their standard. (16.ja-b)

Each person. therefore, has a spirit-refined 'Ii-within his own body. The goal of self-cultivation is then to keep this spirit within oncscl£ By doing so. the adept is able to gain an understanding of the things of the world: The extremity of divine ilIuminadon (WII lIIillg)-SO brilliant. it knows the myriad things. Hold it fut within. and do not be excessive. Sol Do not ..now things to disordet the .eru.es, and do nOt ..now the .enses to diJ.order the mind.. This is called obtaining it within. (16.)a) The adept is able to understand all things because he does not allow his unscs to be disordered by things and holds fast (0 the divine illumination within.

Sot. FoUowing Wang Niaruun in dropping {he Ji.' e>:crescenl.

Concentrue the 'Ii as if a spirit (ru shcn 1ZIl ifII). and the myriad things will all rQide within. Can you concentrate' Can you unifY? Can you nOt engage in crackm.aking and milfoil divinarion and yd: undentand auspiciolUness and inauspieiousness~ Can you stO~ Can you r=:h an end:' Can you not seek from Others and obtain it in youndP. Think about it. think about it, and think about it again. If you think about it but do Me pe!ld:f2te, the ghOstS and spiritS will pend:f2re it. ThiJ is not due to the POW" of ebe ghosts:md spirits; it u due [0 the ultimate point of essential 'Ii. (16.sa) The argument here rests on the claim that the universe is composed of qi, and that change is a produo;r of the alterations and transformations of this 'Ii. Shfn, the most highly refined form of 'Ii, is able to understand the proper movements of the univeru, and, since humans have chis form of 'Ii within themselves as well. mey ultimately can attain the same comprehension through their own efforts. The claim, in other words, is that there exist substances within oneself that, properly cultivated, can gain one the powers of a spirit. Thus, self· cultivation allows one to understand auspiciousness and inauspiciousness without resorting to divination. This understanding is attained not because the ghosts and spirits have given one information, and not because selfcultivation allows one to ascertain the intentions of particular spirits, but be· cauu one has a£nined sufficient refinement on one's own to understand the worlcings of (he universe. Thus. since all mings consist of 'Ii, that which possesses the most refined 'Ii (as do the spirits) possesses boch knowledge about and power over that which possesses less refined 'Ii. By accumulating aunce within himself. man becomes like a spirit: able to understand the changes of forms, avoid being harmed by them, and even gain control over them. In orner words, the cosmology of the ~eiyeW is one ofhicrarchical monism, and one's goal is to gain ever more potency over {he world of forms by becoming ever more refined. Man's powers and limitations are defined by the resulting hierarchy of Heaven and E:.rrh. At his weakest, he is a thing like other things; at his strongest, he is capable of gaining the potency of the esunce possesud by Heavenly powers like the spirits. The authors of the "Nejye~ are thus teach·

GAININ G THE POWER S OF S PIRITS

n6

U7

GAINING THE POWIIRS OF SPiIUTS

ing humans how co usurp powers Ch2t otherwise belong to spirits and to usurp abilities mat ritual specialists claim as their own. Indeed, the text is a deni.al of the very distinCtions argued for so strongly in the Guoyu. Far from intcrnali2:ing a slummistic practice, the "Neiyc~ is rather an attempt [0 bypass the work of ritual specialists. Power and knowledge. the autho rs argue. can be gained by cultivating oneself and becoming like a spirit: this allows one to know the panerns of the (Ol mOS and [0 be able to conrrol things. I therefore: disagree strongly with me rc.ding of me ':Neiyc" offered by A. C G raham. ~ menrioned .above:, A. C. G raham compares the text with the Guoy" passage quoted above. But G raham accepts a shamanistic reading of the GUO]U pus-agc and then reads the "Neiyc" as an 2nempt to shift sh2ffianic practices toward self-cultivation. t have argued here for a different ruding of both texts. The point of the GUO]U passage was not to discuss the shamanistic linking of nun and spiri t but to emphasize the importance of maintaining a distinction between the two: properly trained ritual specialists. the teXt argues. will keep the worlds of man and spirit separate. This separation was presented as a prerequisite for an orderly world. The "Neiye.- in direct contrast. is claiming that humans potenrially possess the same e~ential 'Ii as spirits and that humans can thus. chrough cultivation. achieve the powers of spirits. If the point of the GUO]U passage was to maintain a proper ritual separation between humans and spirits. the point of the "Neiye- is to argue that humans can overcome the distinction. And m e GUO]U passage claims that disasten can be avoided only th rough such a separation; the -Neiye- that disuten can be avoided by me sage who crosses such boundaries. Like Empedocles. the authors of the "Neiye- presented a cosmological model that redefines both humanity and spirits in a way that divine powers are obtainable by humans. By claiming to be in possession of techniques that allow the practitioner to obtain the powers of spirits without resorting to the arts of divination patronized ac the courts. the authors were making m atgument for their own authority: instead of trying to divine the intentions of the spirits and to control them through sacrifices. they claim the ability to divinize themselves. These ideas were promulgated by figures outside the major courts, in an attempt co displace the ritu.al specialists by denying the theistic underpinnings of their practices. Far from being an assumption emerging from a

shamanistic substrawm, monistic cosmology in China-just as in G reecewas a language of opposition. Conclusion

J have sketched the emergence, in early Greece md China, of clainu of selfdivinization. In both culwres, chese cWms emerged withi n religious and political contextS dominated by theistic beliefs and practices. Indeed, an malysis of the twO traditions reveals beliefs that spirits conrrol nawra! phenomena, that spirits are potentially capricious. md thac humans and spirits therefore have a potencially agonistic relationship. The major courts in both regions maintained ritual specialists co influence. mollify. and gain information from the spirits through divinatory and sacrificial arts. And. I have argued. one of the main reasons that notions of a monistic cosmology. of continuity between human and divine realnu, and of the ability of humus to gain the powers of divinities arose in both cultures was precisely that such practices were seen by those outside the ritua1 system as an effective response to the practices dominant at the courts of the day. In neither cue should shammism be seen as the weUspring of fifth- and fourth-cenwry BC thought-whether as a fifth -century diffusion (in the cue of Greece) or as a deep-seated cultural practice (in the case of China). The fact thac the shamanism hypotheses of Dodds and Chang point in different directions should be enough in itself to give cause for chought. For Dodds. shamanism explained the emergence of dualism in Greek thought. and for Chang the dominance of monism in China. In any case. the hypothesis is unconvincing for eimer culwre. In Greece. the emergence of claims that humans could become gods was a response to the practices of the ricualspecialists. Although G reek thought is often-in the sinological literature, at any race-presented as having been based on a ([agic cosmology and as assuming an inseparable barrier between hu mans and gods, the notion of humans becoming divine is in fact a crucial motif in early Greek thought. and it developed precisely in opposition [0 a tragic cosmology. In Greece. every bit as much as in China, chere were competing cosmologies. For China, chere were at least four different responses to ritual specialists. T he Lunyu supports ritual specialists but o pposes an instrumental reading of

u,

",

GAINING THB POW1lRS OF SPTRITS

GA I NING T H E POWERS OF S PI RITS

ritual actions. Sacrifices should be performed for the purposes of cultivation, not in o rder [0 influence t he spina.. Heaven. the highest divinity. is granted nonn.uive suna, but in a specific Rnse: .uges, those humans who cultivate themselves properly, understand the proper :aspects of Heavcn and model thenuclves on it. The latter-born should then follow the .uges' model in cul· tiVating themselves. H owever, with no ability to influence Heaven or the spirits. man simply h;t$ to accept wh.;ucvcr Heaven sends. The early Mohists argued that the realm ofHcaven and the spirits has its own innate hierarchy. and rh
only one of a field of responses (0 such specwists that developed during the fifth 2nd fourth centuries 6e. Monistic cosmology. f.u from being.an assumption of the times. was initi.ally a form of critique, bued on an attempt to bypass the domin.ant modes of orientation toward the world of spirits. The advoc2tes of these pr2ctices beg2n 2rticulating new definitions of the nuure of spirits. the nature of hu· m2nity. 2nd the rel2tionship between the two. More precisely. these 2rticuLa· tions involved ane mpts ro reduce the distinction between humans 2nd spiro its. and to 2rgue that. through proper practices. one C2n att2in divine powers. In other words. in China JUSt .as in Greece, monism w.as 2 later development • .and in borh cultures monistic cosmologies were formul2ted in opposi. tion to the dominant pn.crices supported by the sute. The 2ttempt to contrut these fWO cultures in terms of the claim that one assumed 01 tr.agic disjunction between hwn.ans and gods th2t the ocher. due to its sh2manistic substflnum. never possessed is unconvincing. Such a contrast requires raking particular teXts out of COntext 2nd reading them as assumptions of an entire culture. Some of che tuts that are often cited in such contrastive fnme · works were written within debares that we re in fact quite similar in Greece 2nd China. Ceruinly the "Neiye~ offers 2 cosmology completely different from, say. that found in the Tht-ogu"y. but it is far less different from thar in Empedocles. And both Empedocles 2nd the "Neiye" conuin artempts to formul2te 2 cosmological model with self·diviniz2tion cwms in order to question the modes of authoriry dominant at the time. There are. of course, significant differences in the monistic cosmologies proposed in these two cultures. In terms of the examples discussed in this ch2pter. Empedocles w.as dealing with numerous ideu-such as reinc2rnarion-not found in the early Chinese material. But the more significant dif· ference lies in che socw cl2inu of the figures in question. In che c.ase of Empedocles. the emphasis of self·diviniution WOIS put of an 2ttempt to form an altern2tive W2y of lifc and ultimately an alternative communiry-a claim th2t certainly holds true for Pbto.as welL Cbims of self·diviniz2cion in early Greece. in other words, tended co be m2de by those groups in opposi. tion co the polis. In early China. such appeals were similarly m2de by figures who opposed che politic.al 2nd religious scructures of the time. but they were n.rely used in the 2tcempr to build alternative communities, On the comfllry. many such appe21, we re made in the form of advice to kings-calling on rulers to follow

als. H umans should simply follow the dictates of Heaven, who cre;lited (he hum2Jl political order. provided natural resources for human appropriation. and. along with the spirits. OIctively intenoenes in hwnan 2fF.lirs to reward the good 2nd punish the b2d. The Mohists denied the ordering power ofhum2n ritu:al vis· a·vis the divine realm. The divine realm was already properly or· dered; indeed. the divine realm wu ordering the hum2n ralm. Sacrifice W2$ thus defined within 2 hiera rchic.al. do 141 dCJ framework. T he MChu yu. xi2" chapter of che Guoyu supported ritual specialistS as a means of m2intaining a proper hie ruchy between humans 2nd spirits and thereby obt2ining a harmonious world for humans. The text wu written in oppo.sition to the attempt to overturn the proper distinction th2f. 2ccording ro the aurhors. should prevail between humanity and the divinities. The authors thus took 2 po.sition compn2ble to thar found in me "Sheng min" poem discussed in me previous ch2pter; in the "Chu yu, xiOl; however. this position is c1eOlrly being asserted avin5t those who might transgress the boundaries befWeen humans and spirin. The "Chu yu. xi2" is thus compua· ble to P ind2r's attempt to m2int2in a distinction befWeen hum2ns and spirin againsr contempor.ary critiques. Fin211y. the "Neiye" claims that humans have wimin themselves the ability to gain powers like those held by the spirits. Although the "Neiye" 2Ccepts the hier.archy of He.aven. Earth. and man. it holds mat humans C2n g.a.in the 2bility to control things and understand fomme and misforrune without re.sorring to ritu.al arts to divine the intentions of spirits. In short. the "Neiye" is asserting precisely the sort of position th2t textS like the Guo," 2re rejecting. T hus. not only were the claims of continuity between human and divine powers not OIn assumption in early China, but such c12ims we re made in explicit o pposition to ritual speCialists of the day, Moreover, such claims were

GAINING THE POWERS OF SPIRITS

GAINING THE POWERS OF SPIRITS

their practices and advice as opposed to those of the divinacory and sacrificial specialists dominant at court. Indeed, it was not until the Eastern Han that such self-divinization practices (in a very different form) were appropriated and utilized by religious Daoisr communities to formulate the basis of an alternative political order. The interesting comparison between Greece and China lies in the differ· ent ways that such claims were debated, the different groups thar appealed to self-divinization practices, and the historical consequences.of the ways in which such debates played out. The comparative approach that I advocate, therefore. is one in which the analyst auempt:S first co locate similar tensions and concerns in the cultures in question and then traces the varying responses co those tensions and concerns. Such an approach has two advantages. First of all, it allows us to avoid the tendency in compararive frameworks to deny the individual as well as the differences that exist within cultures. If we focus on discovering common tensions rather than on contrasting different OlSSumptions, then it is possible, once one has isolated the political and culNtal tensions, to study the ways in which particular individuals, in particular contexts, rry to deal with the perceived problems. The comparison then revolves around the attempts of individuals in other cultures to deal with similar political and cul· tural concerns. Second. by rm:king explicit the tensions with which figures were gtappling. it becomes possible to analyze particular st,;L[ements as reflective of an arcempt at solving a given problem and not as necessarily in· dicative of assumptions of the larger culture as a whole, It thereby helps the analyst avoid the tendency. for example, to read a given statement concerning the correlation of humans and spirits made in a single text as necessarily reflective of the beliefs of the rime. In mis chapter, for example, I sugsest that at least one of the ideas often promoted in comparative studies-the contrast between me ~tragic~ cosmology of early Greece and the ·continuous~ cosmology of e.arly China-is based on a misreading of specific claims that were made within larger political and cultural conflicts. Rather than focus on a claimed difference between Greece and China. we should instead attempt to read chese claims in a conreXtuai and historical manner-as claims being made in particular contew-and to ask why such claims were being made and against whom they were being made. Many of the interesting comparative issues then lie in

discovering the different ways that these conflicts and debates unfolded historically. In the nexr three chapters, I continue to explore claims about relations between humans and divinities made in the Warring States period. I trace what happens when the claims concerning the potentially divine powers of humans become more and more common over the course of me fourth and third centuries DC, as well as me historical implications of how such claims were received.

'"

ACCBPTING THB ORDBR OF HBAVBN

In Zheng there was a specialist on spirits named Ji Xian. He could cell whether a man would live or die, survive or be destroyed, have good fortune or b~, live long or die young. and he could predict the year, momh, week, and day u though he were a spiric.

3

Accepting the order of heaven

1

~

Ji XiOln's powers, indeed, were such that the apprentice Liezi felt him to be superior to Liexi's own master. The rem;ajnder of t he anecdote shows mat me powers of the spirit specialist ue, counterinruitively, quite limited and that Liexi's master is indeed far more impressive.1 I crace the detOlils of the ugument below. H ere, it is sufficient to note that this critique of the ritual specialists of the day is a recurrent the me in w the -I nner Chapters. In another anecdore, ZhuOlngzi, in a discussion of how trees useful to m:m are inevitably cut down, concludes:

Humanity and Divinity in Z huangzi and Mencius

In the previous chapter, I explored the emergence in the fourth cenrury Be of ckims thar hum:ms could gain divine powers or, more explicitly. of claims that humans had more direct access to divine powers chan wu accepted in contemporary ritwl practices. It is within chis co ntext, I will argue, that we

must understand [he thought of Zhuangzi and Mencius. I begin with Zhuangzi. focusing on his critique of the ritual specialises of the day and nacing his elaboration of the potentially divine aspects of humans-notions whose vocabulary is directly reminiscent of that of the 'Neiye - :,md his exH

planation of the relarionship berween these div ine aspects and H eaven. I then rum ro Meneius and his discussions of similar concerns. Mencius, I will argue, also sees humans as capable of gaining divine powers-Ol position that for Mencius gives rise to che possibility of tension between humans Olnd H eOlven. Ulcimneiy, both ZhuOlngzi Olnd Mencius Olrgue that mOlfl must accept the order of H eaven. But, fOf both, OlCCeptance is a far more problematic act than has often been portrayed. "Nothing Can Overcome H eaven": The Notion of Spirit in the Zhuangzi One of Zhuangzi's anecdotes opens with a description of a rirual speciOllisr named Ji Xian:

Therefore, before they have lived out cheir years given by Heaven, [hey are CUt down by axes in mid-journey. This is the danger of being something chat can be used. Thus, in the Jie sacrifice, oxen with white foreheads, pigs with upturned snouts, or a man with piles cannOt be offered to the river. This is something chat all ritual specialists and invocators know, since they are considered inauspicious. Buc chis is why the spirit-man considers chern greatly auspicious. (1'1/ 4/80-8 )) H ere the contrast is drawn between, on the one hand, the rimal specialist and invocator (& ~5l) and, on t he other, a spirit-man (jhtn ren ffilfl A), a term t hat appears &equendy in the - Inner Chapters- o f the Zhuangzi. Unlike the ritual specialists, Zhuangzi informs us, the spirit-man does not distinguish objects in te rms of what is usable or unusable for sacrifices. Why th is is significant is, again, something I will PUt off for t he moment. H ere, I simply wish to point OUt Zhuangzi's object of criticism. As we saw in the previous chapter, this critique of ritual specialists was a common theme in the fourth century Be. The "Neiye,W for example, argued against the concept of t he relatio nships between hum:ms and spirits held by the ritual specialists of the day and claimed that humans had more direct access [0 divine powers than was accepted in contemporary ritual prOlctices. As we shall see, Zhuangzi, while borrowing a great deal of vocabulary from fhese texts, also opposed many assertions of human access to divine power. •. Zhw""gti, Harvard- ¥ enching S;nological Index Serie•. lol?hs- ,6; her.inatter cited in ,he 'el[(. My {ranlla{;on. of rhe Zh"~"gti hne heen .idod grudy by {hose o{Burton Wallon .nd A. C. Grah.m. ~. POri Ion. of .hil '«';on on Zhu.npi arc rahn fro.,. my "'NOIhing Can O vercome Huven', The NOflon ofSpirir in rhe ZI:owugti:

-

ACCBPTING THE ORDER OF HEAVBN

ACCEPTING THB ORDER OF HEAVBN

In fact. much of the power of Zhuangzi's Olfguments comes nom the degree to which he both builds on and questions contemporary .i,~-"f'h,d'ffp." ;---< cations of gaining such powers. In this section. I look . Zhuangzi's vision of d~;how he defines ir, why-he-defines . this way. and how ircompares with other definitions at the rime.'This entails an analysis of many of the anecdotes in which Zhuangzi discusses the notion of spirit (.Jm-n), as well a.s an examination ofZhuangzi's cosmology. Zhuangzi reserves the term ~spirit_manH for some of the f1gures he most admires. LiezL a figure. as we saw above. characterized in the Zhuan~i as an apprentice in self-cultivation, fails to measure up: Lie:;d rode rhe wind wirh great skill. He only returned mer filteen days. He brought good fonune. but not in great Olmounts. And :uthough he avoided walking. he srill hOld that on which he depended. As for he who ascends the correctness of Huven md Earth and rides the give-and-take of the six 'Ii in order to wander withour limit-what does he depend on! Thus I say: the perfect mm has no sdf, the spiritmm (lhtn rrn) has no merit, rhe sagdy mm has no fame. (zhh9-11) Liezi's failure lies in his dependence. The perfect man, the sage, the spiritman, in contrast, do nor rely o n things, do not depend o n things, and wander without limit. Zhuangzi elaborates the argument in a dialogue berween Lian S hu and Jian Wu. A disbelieving )ian Wu begins by quoting the words of a certain)ie Yu: He said, 'On the dist .. nt Gushc Mountain thefe lives a spirit-man (lhrn un). His flesh is like ice and snow, md he is modesr as a virgin. He does not eat the five grains bur such in the wind md drinks the dew, ascends the v;tporous 'Ii. rides [he flying dragons. and wanden beyond the four seas. When his spirir is ooncentmed. he makes things free from flaws md makes the harvests ripen: (zld18-)o) In addition to being free and un bounded. the spirit-man can, by concentrating his spirit, influence the natural world as well. This poeeney, however, does not consist of an ability to prognosticate-the power possessed by the spirit specialist nom Zheng. Instead, the spirit-man can cause things (w") co be perfect and plentiful. By concentrating his spirit, the spirit-man can make things flourish as they narurally ought, nee nom harm. Lian Shusupports )ie Yu's words and builds on his claims: ). My undeutanding of dlue iuueJ Iw bttn grady enhanced by rarley, "Zhuan~·' Undemanding ofSkilIfulneu and the Ultimate Spiriula1 Stlte."

'"

As for rhis mm. norhing can hatm him. Great floods can reach Heaven. but he will not drown; great droughts can melt mC(:U and stone and scorch the earth md mountains, but he will not bum .... Why would he worry about things! (zh/j:~-}")

Spirit-men are not dependent since they are not controlled by, nor do they bother themselves with, things (wu). As Zhuangzi elsewhere stOites: o ne should be Hable to overcome things and not be injured by them~ (fiE MJ tm

ffij 1" {B; '1117133). Another anecdote makes the point even more forcefully: Wang Ni said: "The perfect man is divine (lhtn)! Ifche grear swamps catch fire, he cannot be burned. If the Yellow and Han Rivers freeze. he cannot be made cold. If swift: lightning strikes mountains md the gale winds shake the su. he CinnOt be frightened. A man such as this rides the vaporous 'Ii. mounts the sun and moon. and wanders beyond the four seas. Death and life do not :urer him-how much less the principles ofbenefir md harm: (6!z!7l-n) Natural phenomena-things-have no effect on the perfea: man. Moreover, he is not contained by any boundaries: neithe r the four seas nor even death itself constrain him. Whereas the spirit specialist )i Xian possessed knowledge of life and death. Zhuangzi claims that he who is divine is unaffected by life and death. The divine do not possess special knowledge of. nor power over, things; instead, they are simply unaffected by things. The distinction will prove to be crucial. The point comes OUt clearly in a quotation attributed to Confucius: Do not listen with your ears but lisren with your heart; do nor lisren with your heart bur lisren with 'Ii . . .. To refrain from leaving tracks is easy; ro nor walk on the ground is diffkuIr. VIllen acting for the sake of man. it is easy ro deceive; when acting for the sake of Heaven. it is difficult to deceive. You have heud of using wings to fly; you have never hurd of flying without using wings. You have hurd of using knowing to know; you have not heard of using not knowing ro know . .. . Allow your ears and eyes ro penetrate on rhe inside. and place the understanding of the mind on the outside. Ghosts and spirits will come to dwdl. nor ro mention the human. This is rhe transformarion of rhe myriad things. (9/4/z7-n) The general perspective of t his passage is the same as those quoted above: the sage can walk without depending on the ground; he can fly without depending on wings. By cultivating qi. the text argues, one can teach a poim ae which ghom and spirits dwell within one.

,,'

ACCEPT I NG T H E ORDER OF HEAVEN

ACCSPTING THB O It DS R O P HEAVSN

This terminology of spirits coming (0 dweU (she *) within the adept: calls to mind the ~eiye~ chapter of the GIl!3n:z:i. Indeed. one passage in the '"Ne iye~ is quitt similar to chis p2$S;lgc from the Zhuangzi: "There is a spirit that of iaelf resides within the body. at times leaving. at times encering. No one is able to conrcmpurc it. If you lose it, there will be disorder; if you Db· rain it there will be order. Carefully clean its resting place, and the essence will of irs own enrer.~· Through self.cultivation, one can bring spirits (Jhfn)

over the myriad things but with a reference to the transformation of the myriad things. But what precisely does this mean! And if the gnosis offered by Z huang%i is superior to that in which one p.ins the powers of prognosti· cation held by spirin, then what precisely does it inyolve~ To answer these questions, let us turn to an anecdote that expliCitly discusses the proper relationship of humans to the differentiated world of things (WII). T he anecdote concerns twO figures, Zi Si and Zi You. The Iatrer is being refashioned by the Fashioner of Things (ZIIOWUZht ~ tt!J :if) and is que ried by Zi Si as to his feelings about (his:

and essence (jing) to dwell (JIn) within oneself,' Although the Zhllllngzi and ~Neiye" usc similar tcrminology, the goals of the cwo texu are radically different. In [he "Neiye." [he gMl of the superior man is to unifY and conrrol things (!hi WIll fi ff?J) and, indeed.. [0 gain power over [hem. The adept uses self-cultivation through 'Ii to make all under H u.yen submir, nuke the myriad things reside within, and gain an understanding of auspiciousness and inauspiciousneu without reson:ing to divinarion. In the Zhll4ngzi, the spirit-man allows things to be as they naturally ought. The argument of the "Neiye,· then, is thar by relying on 'Ii, one can aHain the powers to conrrol phenomena and foretell the future that spirit specialists can achieve only through magica.l an:s. Whereas a spirit specialist has to reson: co divination ro understand auspiciousneu and inauspiciousneu, the adept in the "Neiye" can do so through 'Ii. But the end result is the $:tI1lt: both the spirit specialist and the practitioner described in the "Neiye" are seeking knowledge about things (wu) and hence power over them. This point is underlined by the fact that the terms used in the "Neiye" to describe the adept are similar to those used by Zhuangzi to describe the spirit specia.list from Zheng: boch the spirit specialist from Zheng and the ade pt in ij$) and can understand the "N eiye" can become "like a spitit" (rll Jhrn auspiciousness and inauspiciousness. Thus, although the Zhullngri uses terminology similar to thar found in the self-cultivation literature, it is in faCt offering a gnosis different both from rhat claimed by the spirit specialists and from that described in the sdf-cultwation literature. Indeed, the passage quoted above concerning spirits coming to dwell closed not with a discussion of the spirit-man's conrrol

tm

-rhe Fashioner ofThingJ is making me all rolled up like this: Zi Si ujd! NDo you detest thisl" Zi You replied: "No-how could I detest ie .. . One obtains life at the proper rime: one IOles it when it is fitting. If you are content with the time, and if you dwell in what is fitting. then anger and joy will be unable ro emet you. This is what of old Wall called 'untying rhe bonds: If you are unable to untie them yourself. then rou will be bound by things. But things cannot u1timardy overcome Huyen. What is there for me to detest?N (11/6/49-53) The concern here for those who are bound by things is in some ways similar to that seen in the ~eiye" for those who are controlled by things. But the thrust of the argument is in many ways the opposite. The goal of cultivation is not to learn to concrol things but to liberate oneself (literally: Nuntie oneselr- zi jit i3 M) by no longer focusing on things. T hings, Zi You as5 ures us, can never overcome H e:lYen (shtng fian): all things are inevitably transformed into other things. To bind oneself to anyone thing (including one's human form ) is to commit oneself to cycles of joy and sorrow; only by complying with this ceaseless rransformative process can one avoid resentment. Unlike the NNeiye,- which is concerned with making all under Heayen submit, the Zhuangzi calls on one to side with ceaseless transformarion itSelf and to accept the flux of the wo rld. And whereas the "Neiye~ teaches one to understand good and bad fortune, the Zhll4ngzi teaches one to accept these as fate: Life and death m fated (mjlll)' That they hayc thc regularity of day and night is a marter of Heaven. As for that with which man cann()( interfere, they all belong to the esscntial qualities of things. They only take Heavcn as their farher, and yet we nill love thcm. How much more that which suqnsses them! (16/6/lO-n )

4. GWOInti, "Neil"': 16.~-b.

,. Sec u.o the Gwanti, -Xiruhu, .h.ong." 1).lb:"If one e"'priu one', de,iru, Ihe .pirit will emu and dwell OJ ;It jill M J... 19). If in clurinS one doc. not clunK fuUr, the .plrh will leave."

w:

Heaven goverlU the ceaseless transformation of things, including human life, and accordingly, we should acquiesce in Heaven's decrees.

,,'

ACCEPTING THE O RO B R O F HBAVEN

The argument continues. If one hides ont's possessions (for example, a boat), they may still be stolen. But if one hides all under Haven in all under H eaven. then nothing will ever be lost (16/6/zs-a6). In other words, if one's view includes everything. then nothing can disappear. The same point holds for the human form: he who embr.tcc:s [he transformations of everything will not mourn the loss o f his form at death (16/612.6-17). Accordingly. the author concludes. Therefore the sage will roam where things cannot be hidden and wnere all aUt. H e rakes pleasure in dying young. he takes pleasure in old age. H e takes pleasure in be. ginnings, he takes pleasure in ends. If men cake him as a modd, how much more th;r,t to which the myriad things are tied and that to which euh single transformationdepcnds. {1616h7-29t

In the cosmology ofrhe Zhuangzi, ill things (wu) are tied to H eaven, and ill things ceaselessly transform. The goal of the adept is not to conrrol things-an act that would be portrayed within this cosmology as an attempt to overcome H eaven. One must, r.lrher, take pleasure in t he ceaseless transformations of the universe-among them, one's own life and durh. Ins tead of attempting to overcome Heaven, one should glory in the transformations of H eaven. The goal, as Z huangzi p uts ir elsewhere, is to ·use to the utmost what one receives trom H eaven" (. . fiJi ~.lJL 7C; 2Ih/32). And, within this cosmology, spirit, too, is associated not with control but ramer with properly following thar which one is given from Heaven:

tt

When Gongwen Xuan saw the Commander of the Right, he was alamled and said: "What son: of man is this~ Why is he so smill? Is rhis due to Heaven or manr T he Comm.a.nder replied, "Ir is due to Heaven, not man. When Heaven gene rates some. thing, it makes it unique. Man's appearance is something given to him. This is how I know it is from Heaven, nor man. A SW2ll1p pheasant walk! ten paces for one peck and a hundred paces for one drink.. Bur it does not seck [0 be nourished in a cage. Irs spirit, even if treated as a king, would not be happy." (8hIl 2-14) The moral of the anecdote is that we must accept what H eaven has given. The spirit of the pheasant cannot be content unless it does what the bird is supposed to do-even if what i( is supposed to do seems absurd, and even if the caged per would receive royal treatment. The contentment of (he spirit, t hen, depends on:an :acceptance of the order of Heaven.

6. Cf. Waflon, Ot~4 "g Tt~, p. 71: and Gnlum, o,~4"l Tu, p. 86.

~ CCB PTING

T HB ORDER OF

HE~VEN

'"

Ar first glance, this stance might appear to be at odds with many of (he statements quoted earlier that stressed a lack of dependency and liberation: the spirit-men roam treely, no longer d epend on things, are no longer bound by things-they are, in fact, untied. In these passages, however, the stress is on :accep(ance: JUSt a.s the spirit of the pheasant can be content o nly if it does what it is supposed to do, so must we learn to accept what Heaven has ordained for us. Fo r Zhuangzi, however, (hese twO seemingly contradictory stances are in fact flip sid es of the same coin: the liberation that arises trom no longer being dependent on things arises trom accepting the order o f H eaven. This is what is behi nd the stOitement quoted above that nothing can overcome Heaven (sheng tilln). To be dependent o n the world of things is, for Zhuang. zi, to attempt to overcome the order of Heaven. This is as true of someone who hOOird.s things as it is of those who try to control things through gaining supernatu ral powers-whet her such powers are gained t hrough the mastery of m:agic or th rough the cultivation of qi. Z huang%i is indeed calling on the spirit to become untied, bur for Zhuang%i t he untied spirit follows the order of the world. H e wants the pheasant to be uncaged, bur, Zhuangzi would emphasize, only so t hat it may walk. ten paces for one peck and a hundred p... ces for one drink. The spirit untied will naturally do what it naturilly ought. This liberated spirit's relationship to the order of Heaven is seen perhaps. mOst forcefully in the famous Cook Ding anecdote. A certain Lord Wenhui comments on the tremendous skills of Cook Ding in butchering. and Ding responds:

I ...m fond of the Way, which ... dvances beyond skill. When I first Staned carving oxen, I could only sec the ox. Alter three years, I never saw the whole ox. Nowadays, r follow along using my spirit, ...nd I don·t use my eyes to look at:all. My senses md knowledge h ...ve stopped, bur my divine desires move along. r accord with the Heav. enly patterns. (1hls-6) Cook Ding's greamess lies in the fact that he uses his spirit, not his eyes. By allowing the divine desires (shcn ]u) [0 go where they wish, Cook Ding ac' cords with rhe H eavenly patterns (finn Ii 7C l!I!V Following the Way, ac· cording with the Heavenly patterns, means, in the case of a butcher, an abil·

I ht

, . For an excellem diKuliion of Ihil pUla~, lee Cook, "Zhuang Zi and His Carving of Confucian Or."

.,0

.,.

ACCEPTING THe ORDER OF HE AVBN

ACCEPTING THB O RD ER OF HBAVBN

ity [0 move Ilawlessly through [he nl(UraJ divisions in the carcass. It does not, in other words, involve any form of transcendence. nor does it involve

become mired in things, so would he oppose any attempt to rranscend the human form, become like a spirit, and gain control over mings: he wants

control over things. Following me desires of the spirit means following the patterns of H eaven. We arc now in a position to undersund Zhu2ngzi's criticisms of ritual

man neither to lose sight of H eaven nor to transcend himself and become like Heaven. If one is a human, then one should remain a human unril the rime o rdained by H eaven occurs and one is transformed intO someth ing

specialists. I n both the anecdotes quoted at the beginning of (his section, tit-

else.' In other words, for Z huangzi the sage does not attempt to tf2l1Scend hu manity: "When neithe r Heaven nor man overcomes th e other- rhis is

ual specw isrs are singled out for failing to support the proper order of H eavcn. In the second anecdote, they prevent things from IiYing out their years given by H eaven (* ~ ~ ;R in contrast to the spirit-man, who wishes them to live out their allotted span. T he criterion for valuation is, in other words, onc's accepance of the order of Heaven.

*).

A similar argument underlies [he anecdote about Liezi and me spirit specialise from Zheng. In me next pa re of the anecdote. Liezi tdis his master. Huzi. about t he great spirit specialist J i Xian. Huzi has Liezi invite the spirit specialist over to use his skills in phys iognomy to predict Huzi's fate. On four separate occasions. Huzi presents a different face to hi m; each is meant to signify an ever deeper Stage o f self-cultivation . The fi rSt time, Huz i

called th e True Man~ (HY 161612.0). H ere the call on man not to attempt to overcome H eaven (smng tian) is linked with the co ncurrent concern that man should also nm: be overcome by H eaven-which is

to

say, man should

not strive to reject his humanity and simply become Heaven. T h is framework also explains t he famous anecdote at the end of chapter s.' Zhuangzi calls on man to do without his dispositions ('ling iW)l(1 and thus

fti

ro prevent righ t and wronf (Jbi ~ ~F) from ente ring. The person who can d o this will be able to perfect his H eaven (clX"ng qi tilll1 fflG ;It 5'C). Zhuang:ti then ha.s Huizi quesrion the meaning o f th is stance: ~How can a 8

man who does without h is dispositions

still be called a man!' (A ffij •

fiiJ p). mZ A; 14/5/54-56). Zhuangzi responds in full:

shows him the patterns of earth (:ttl!; )(), whic h J i Xian misin terprets as meaning that Huzi will soon die. Next Huzi shows him HHeavenly, fertilH ized ground (;R 1;1). which J i Xian misundersrands as signirying (hat H uzi is revivirying. Then Huzi presents him with the Hgreat void that none can overcome" (~ jtp J! M}). which Huzi achieves by "balancing the im-

by being without disJ>O$itions

pulses of the ~r (lfi $;it ·fl:). T he spirit specialist cannot interprer this at all Finally, Huzi presents himself as "not yet having emerged from one's ances.

H uiz i men asia him what adding to life means. and Zhuangzi rcsponds:

W

7.m.

tor" (*"9a -H and J i Xian flees (W"h.5-2.9). The spirit specialist. whose an is concerned only with attaining knowledge over life and death, fails before Huzi. Not only is J i Xian unable to foretell the life and death of H uzi. but H uzi, through cultivation of his 'Ii, is able to rea ch a state in which he is not bound by things, in which me very concerns of life and death become irrelevant. In this s(ate. Huzi can reach back to the point before th ings were diffe rentiated-symbolizcd here as [he

void that cannot be overcome and the state prior to the genef2rio n of t h ings. H The term for "overcome is again JlX"ng--me same word used in the dictum that t hings cannot overcome Heaven. O nce again. for Z h uangzi rhe cultivated figure is one who gains access to the state [ha t nothing can overcome. This sam e point may explain the differenccs between Zhuang:ti and the authors o f a text like the "Neiye." J ust as Z huangzi opposes any attempt to

1r.1

Diuinguishing "right" and "wrong" is what I mean by the disJ>O$irions. Whar I mean is char man should not allow likes and dislikes to en· (ef and thw harm hinudf. He should always, accord with the spontaneous and not add to life. (15/5/51 - 58)

The Way gave w appearance, and Heaven gave w form. Do not use likes and dis· lika to enter and harm the self. Now, you are putting your spirit on the outside. and wearing OUt your essence. (ls/s/s8-S9) The call here is for man to accept that which ill given to him and not to add to life by categorizing rhings according to humanly constructed distinctions of right and wrong. Those who do so hann me self and rhw prevent t hemselves from living out their allotted lifapan. Instead. on e must accord

s. For a careful diKuuion of dlC' (datioN between Heavm and m.m in

tnc Zhuangzi, sec

Ol'llham's "lnnoduaion" to idem, a,"""f'/tM, pp. IS-II'. 1'. For an aceLkm diKunion of Ihit puugc. _ Or.harn, "The Background of the Men· dan Theory of Human Nature: pp. 61 -6). 10. For t he rCUOIIi behind my translat ion of ,/i~f as "ditposiliolu: KC my "Ethics of Re· Ipondh11 PropulYI The Notion ofQi"lin Early ChineK TIlOuglu :

·,'

."

ACCBPTING THB ORDER OF HBAVEN

ACCEPTING THE O RDER OF HEA VEN

with the spontaneous, keep onc's spirit internalized, md not war our onc's essence. Here again, rhen, the notion of spirit is connected with the proper use of thou which was given by Heaven and with the spontaneous way. Gnosis is not a matter of transcending the hum:.!.n but of continuing and perfecting the Heaven within man-a contimation rh.oir requires us ro StOP imposing distinctions on things and to cultivate t hat with which we were endowed.. By now it should be dear that we lre [0 r(.ad the term "spirit.man" liter· ally. Zhuangzi is not calling on humans to become spirits; he is c211ing on humans to cease being dependent on artificial attempts either to rcify things or to categori%e them according co arrific:ia1 standards. A spirit.man is nO{ a man who becomes a spirit but a man who fully CUitivltU his spirit 2nd thus wanders free from things while allowing things (including his own human form) to fulfill their narural endowment. For Zhuangzi. then. the ultimate goals are not to be dependent on things. not to conrrol things. not to transcend the human fonn. He thus opposes the arrempts either to impose artificial distinctions on things or to become a spirit and gain control over things. For Zhw.ngzi. both of these would be a failure to maintain the proper rel:.ationship with Heaven. It is wrong to be bound to things. and it is wrong to attempt [0 transcend the human-for Zhuangzi. becoming bound and overreaching are related. Just as Zhuangzi portrays unloosening and accepting the order of things as the same things. so he sees possessiveness and hubris as linked as well. We often associate Zhuangzi with liberation. with a denial of boundaries. with a call for humanity to become uncaged And. indeed. all these images do appear regularly in t he text. Zhuangzi is clearly concerned that most humans spend their lives dependent on things. foolishly clinging to life and possessions. But. as we have seen. t his concern with not being dependent on or bound by things. with becoming untied. with wandering beyond any boundary. is intimately and directly tied to a cosmological claim: the liberated spirit accords with Heavenly patterns. helps things be as they naruraUy ought to be. and allows things to fulfill {heir Heaven-given allotment. As Zhuangzi repeatedly argues. we cannor overcome Heaven. we must accept fate. and we must accord with the order of Heaven. Through this argument. Zhuangzi is able both to call on man to cultivate himself and to strive to perfeCt his spirit and the Heaven within him and to undercut many of the cl:.ainu being made at the time concerning the ability of

man to gain t he powers of spirirs-whether through magic or cultivation of the qi. Zhuangzi is arguing against any attempt to gain knowledge o r control over the universe; instead he calls on the spirit-man to tab: pleas ute in the patterns of H eaven. Contrary to the general perception. then. Zhuangzi is srrongly committed to the notion mat there are proper patterns in [he namral world mat a cultivated person inherently follows. This is a point. I think, t hat has been missed by those who portray Z huangzi as a relativist. Fo r example. Robert Eno has argued that Zhuangzi is calling on man to engage in skill-based activities mat lead to a state of spirirual spontaneity. And. according to this reading. any skill·based activity would work: "Dao-pracrices can be adapted to any end: the dao of butchering people might provide much the same spiritual spontaneity as the dao of butchering oxen- as many a samurai might testify."u I would argue. on the contra.ry. that Z huangzi is asserting that the cultivated human spirit acts in certain ways rather than others. He docs so not by asserting chat particular activities are ethically better than others but by making a cosmological claim: the truly human person will inherently behave in certain ways rather than in other ways. Just as the pheasant. if it is allowed to do as Heaven means it to do. will walk ten paces for one peck and a hundred paces for one drink. so will a human. if he uses his endowment properly. act in conformity with the Heavenly patterns as well. In this sense. Z huangzi is not a relativis t; he is. on the contrary, a cosmologist with a strong commitment to a certain view of the proper place of humanity in the

"

. universe. Z huangzi's alls for libera.tion can t hus be read as involving a carefu1 redefi nition of notions current at t he time-spirit, Heaven. and man-to argue for a particular type of gnosis-a gnasis involving a breaking of boundaries and yet. at the same time. an acceptance of t he patterns of H eaven. For Z huangzi. liberation involves a proper and spontaneous accepta nce of the o rder of the world. Anything else is an attempt to overcome H eavco-a project doomed to failu re.

LI. Eno, "Cook Dingl DlOl nd 1he Umill of Philolophy: p. '+1. For :another argument , h.>, Zhu;mgzi iI a rw.livin, &« Han"n."A Tao of Tao in Chuang-rz.....11. My condwlonl are thw 1..aT~!y in line with tho" ofPhUip J. Iv:anh~. even Ihough our r(lp«d~ conclwionl WUt achieved IIlrough diR"erem route.!; I « his "\Val Zhuangzi a R,da. ejvlltf

'34

A CCB PTING THS O RDBR OF H EAVEN

The Resign.ation of the Sage to the Order of H e.aven: The Cosmology of the M cnciu5

Like ZhlW1gz~ Mencius calls on humans [ 0 accept the order of Heaven. u Indeed, as he blundy states: "'He who accords with H ayen is preserved; he who opposes H eaven is desrroyed~ (4Ah). Submission to the order of Heaven is fo r Mencius a crucw clemenr along the path to sagehood. Indeed. Mencius at times argues that culrivating oneself is precisel)" the means by which one fulfills onc's duty to H eaven. Preserving and nourishing the mind and nature endowed o n us by Heaven :arc how one serves H eaven. and knowing onc's nature is how one knows Heaven. And. as with Zhuangzi. a cmew part of this accepunce of the order of H C;lven is t hat o ne accepts whatever Heaven o rdairu. without concern for living long or dying young: Mendu. said: "He who has fuUy used his mind kno ws his natU re. If he knows his natu re, he knowl H eaven. Preserving his mind and no urishing his narure arc the ways that he .erYcs H eaven. Dying young and living long are nor tWO distinct things. He cultivates hinudf so as to await what is to come. This is the means by which he establishes his destiny (ming)." (7Ah) One establishes one's destiny Heaven mandates.

by cultivating onesdf and accepting wharever

Like Zhu.m g2:i, M encius accepts much of t he vocabulary of the day for th e potentially divine powers of humans. Indeed, several pusages from the Mencius are reminiscenr o f the ~Neiye.~ In describing his flood-like 'Ii, for enmple, Mencius stlltes: ~If one cwrivates it with straighmess and d oes not harm it, it will hll the space berween H eaven and Eanh~ (uh). Elsewhere, he argues thar such a cul tivation allows one to encompass all things: -rhe myriad t hi nV are complete in me~ (7A/ .). Because of rhese grear powers, he who CWtw.ues himself can transform the people and unite Heaven and

E.nh, Mencius said, "If there is a hegemon, the people are happy. If there is a king. the peo ple are rontented. They do not bewme resentful if people are put to death, nor do they become 1:l:1:y14 if they gain profits. The people are daily moved toward the good, but they do nOt know what nuka it so. Now, where a gentleman passa, he

Ii· Pon ions of ,his secl ion are uken 6-0 111 my "Following t he Command, ofHe:lven: The Notion of Ming in Early China:

'4. Reading II for oW.

ACCEPTING THE ORD B Il O F HEAV E N

'"

trarufomu; where he raides, he is divine (~n). Above and below, Heaven and Emh flow together. How can it be said that he is but a small addition!" (7A/ ,)

Indeed, Mencius even goes so fiar as to define reach ing a state of divinity

(shm) as being above sagehood itself Haosheng Buhzi asked: -what kind of a person is Yuezhtngrif" Mencius said, "A mean by 'good' and 'tnutworthy'?" Mencius responded, "If one can desire it, one can be called 'good.: If one h.u it within onadf. one o.n be called 'trusr:worthy: If one is filled with it and embodies it, one can be called "beautiful: If one is filled with it, embodies it and also hal radiant brilliance, one o.n be called 'great: If one is great and can transform it, one can be called ·sage.' If one is a sage but cannot be understood, one can be called ·spirit: Yue:hengzi is in the fi~t two of thf:$e, but is less Ihan the last fout." b Bh.s)

good man, a tnutworthy man." "What do you

Despite t he similarit ies with teXtS like the "Neiye,· the ultimate goals are qu ite different. The "Neiye" taught how to gain t he powers o f spiritspowers [0 understand forrune and misfortune and powers to control things- but Mencius is concerned with a diffe rent set of issues. Like Z huangzi, h e wants to d efine sagehood as meaning an acceptance of the order o f H eaven. Like Z h uangzi, then, M encius is tying together twO $CemingJy disparare bodies o f thought: an emphasis on accepting the o rder of H eaven and support for the divine powers of humans. With Z huangzi, these rwo are joined

by claiming mat the ultimate spirit will simply and spontaneously enaCt what H eaven ordained: [he spirit spontaneously follows-and aids-the movemen t of H eaven. Thus, cultivating one's spirit and accepting the order of H eaven ate for Zhumgzi o ne and the same thing. For M encius, h owever, t here is a potential tens ion here. In this respect, Mencius is building on Con· fucius. Like Confucius, Mencius holds that H eaven is the source o f the moral patterns that hu mans should foUow. Because of h is interest in p lacing divine powers wimin humans, however, Mencius argues t har these patterns are obtainable nOt because me an cient sages modeled themselves on Heaven but because H eaven has rooted them in man himself. H eaven has gran ted hu· mans a nature t hat, if cultivated proper ly, allows them to become fully mo ral: "The nature of the superior man is humaneness, propriety, r itual, and knowledge. They are rooted in h is mind" (7 A /:u ), H eaven has given aU h umans the potential for sage hood. But such a commitment means that the fe n.ion implicit in the LunJu (discussed in the previous chapter) becomea all

."

ACCEPTING THB OROS P. Of HBAVBN

the motc significant, If aI.J. humans have within themselves the porcnrial

ACCEPT ING TH E OR OER OP HEAV E N

[0

become a sage and if H eaven. not man. decides whether order will prev:a.i1, then the potential conAier between Heaven and man deepens.

Humans have: within memsdves both (he porcnri21 f O become fully moral and the: potential to become spirits and bring order to the world. But, as with Confucius. the question of whether o!'
ods, and hc makes it qu itc clcar thar according with H eavcn means, ar rimes, acccpting a statc of a!hiTS that runs countcr m rhc norrtUtive way-a way that Heavcn itself has givcn man thc potcntial to bring about. Bur wh.;n happens in such an cvCnt? Must humans simply resign t hc mselvcs to a lack of ordcr if such are thc wishes of Heaven~ This is l difficult question for M encius to answer. Thc ultimate answer, of course. is that one must indced lCCCpt the ordcr t har H eaven o rdains. But for Mcndus t his must nor imply simple resignation. As hc argues:

This potcntial conflict-unthinkable from thc point of view of Zhulngzi-pb.ys OUt forccfully in numc rous places in Mencius' work. One obvious problcm, givcn Mencius' poliric:.tl thcology, is the issue of hcrcditary mo narchy. If everyonc has the potcnriil to become l S:.l.gc, thc n why is it no t the C:.l.5C thu. u any givcn timc. the most cultivued person in t hc rcalm is t hc king~ Indeed, for Mcncius, most o f the greatest sages since the introduction of hereditary monarchy havc not becn kings: Yi Yin, thc Duke ofZhou, Confucius, and. perhlps. Mcncius himself. Is hereditary monarchy thercforc in opposition to t he ordcr ofHeavcn~ On the contrary. Mcncius is committcd to claiming rhlt H C:.l.vcn itself esclblishcd the cusmm: Wan Zhang asked: ·Some people say that, when it came to rhe rime ofYu. power (de) declined He did not give power to the wonhy but inuC2Ci gave it to his son. h this correct:'" Mencius uid, "No. Ie is nO{ so. If Heaven h;u:l given it to a wonhy, then it would have been given to a wonhy. Since Huven gave it to the son. it was given to the son." (sA/6) Mencius recounts the history of thc succession of Yao. Shun, and Yu and points out that. in each C:.l.SC. the won:hy man worked with t he ruler for several ycars. and the people grcw to crust him. But this W:.l.S not trUC of Yu's minister Yi. whom the people did not know weU. Moreover, Qi. me son of Yu, W:.l.S worthy. whercas the sons of Yao and S hun were not. All of this. lccording to Mencius. was mandatcd from Heavcn and thus was not due toYu:

Mencius said. "Everything is mandated (IIIing). One accords with what is rorrect. Thtteforc. one who undersrands what is mandared does not ,rand beneath a &lling wall. One who dies after fulfilling his way has corrected his destiny (millg). Dying in fetter. i. nor a correct destiny: (7A/'J.)

All this wu due to H uven. It is not ,omething that man could have done. If no one does it and yet it is done. then it is Huven. If no one brin~ something about (zhi flI:) and yet it is brought about, it is mandated (ming). (sA/6)

Everything is mandated. but this should not lead to shirking: the concern should. rathcr, be to corrcct onc's destiny by trying to fulflll onc's way. But this stancc opens scvcral qucstions. Zhuangzi tcaches thlt liber:.ttion involves m lCCCpunCC of thc ordcr of Helvcn. Mcncius also lrgues thar onc must lCCCpt thc ordcr of H Clvcn, but for him t his is not l mattcr of liberation. Although s:ages must submit to what Hcavcn o rdains. thc puh to s:agchood docs not rcst on submission. Indecd. Mcncius' fonnulatioN sccm to imply thar whatever is to comc is no t necessarily right-but one must acccpt it.

According to M encius, therelfter hereditary monarchy became thc nonn: the kingship was :.tlWlYS hmded down to the son. O nly if :.I. ruler were truly horrible-as with Jie and Z hou-was the trmsmission from f.l.ther co son interrupted. Otherwise. Heaven would not stOP the succession. For Mencius. th is ex plains why Yi. Yi Yin, and thc Duke of Zhou could never be kings: thcir rulers were acceptable-even if not as sagely as Yi. Yi Yin. and the Duke ofZho u themselves. But Mcncius' argument begs thc qucstion. This may explain why Yu should no t be criticiud, but it hardly answers the I:.trger point implied in

",

ACCEPTING THE ORDER OF HEAV EN

ACCSPTING THS 0ll,D811, OP HBAVBN

Wan Zhang's query: even if Qi was ;it better prospenive ruler than Yi, it h,ardly follows th.u hereditary monarchy is in general a good thing. And, smet Huven chose the rulers, Heaven is resporuible for the institution. Why, ifYi. Yi Yin, and (he Duke ofZhou were morc wonhy, did they not become rulers! Or. [0 put the question more forcefully, why did Heaven ordain hereditary monarchy ro be the norm? No answer to (his is given. note here is th.u Mencius mues no
Or

Bur what happens when [he mand:ates of Heaven dearly conflict with the ethical stance of the sage~ The most forceful and poignant example of this occurs near the end of Mencius' career. Mencius spent several years troweling from state to State, trying to convince one of the rulers to listen to his advice. He received a position at the court of Qi. and, if the current text is to be believed, had audiences with the king o f Qi on several occasions. As sever.al commentators have noted, Mencius clearly perceived himself to be the Yi Yin of his era: JUSt as Yi Yin had counseled Tang on how to bring order to the world and establish the Shang dyna5ty, so would Mencius advise the ruler of Qi how to bring order to the world and st:ln a new dyna5ty.1S However, the king did nor follow Mencius' advice. Mencius did not become the next Yi Yin, and the world was no t o rdered. His life project in f.U]ure, Mencius left the st:lte of Qi: v.thcn Mencius Idt Q i, Chong Yu uked him on the way, -Muter, you seem to look displeased. A few days ago r heard you say that 'a gentleman does not resent Heaven nOf bear a grudge agairut men: - Mencius responded, ,hat was one rime; this is another time. Every five hundred years, it mun be the case that a king will arise. In the interval there mWit arise one from which an age takes its JWTle. From rhe Zhou until now, it has been more than seven hundred years. The Il1.ark has passed, and rhe time, if one examines it, is proper. Yet Heaven docs nOf yet wish to bring order to all under Heaven. If H eaven wished to bring order to all under Heaven, who in the present generation is there other than md H ow could I be displc:ased:> " (a8h) I'

lS· 5«, e.g., Robert Eno', dlKwsion in

n.. C,MJW(;" n CMlliQMoj H.411tn. p. 26ln60. The

rdevam ~ugu on Yi Yin are Mmpi sAh and sB/!. ,6. My nandalion or Ihis JnI..Ugt: is heavily indebted 10 flut oro. C.' l...:Iu, MnH'IWI, p. 1l4. My undeuunding or lhe oneaning of the panagt: hal betn aided rrt,uendowly by tht 'Iwy,t.

'"

The scuement to which Chong Yu refers was uttered by Confuciw. Indeed, the entire conversation between Chong Yu and Mencius is comparable to, and probably constructed with reference to, the passage from the IAn,u in which mis quotation occurs: The muter said, "No one understands me. Zigong asked, -What does it mean to say no one understands your' The master replied, "r do not resenl Heaven nOf bear a grudge against man. I srudy here and reach to what is above. Only Heaven understands me.· ([4/)5) M

In general terms, the passage nom the MenciuJ reveals a similar view, bur 11 Mencius is dearly less accepting of th e situation. Mencius argues strongly for a cydic.al order, in which .a king arises every five hundred years and in the interv.al there is a sage. This is a no nnative partern in human history, and me moment for a $age to emerge hu arrived. Mencius clearly feels that he is that sage. So why has Mencius' project ended in £.tilurer The only possible reason is that Heaven does not wish for there to be order. There is no moral or practic.al reuon: in preventing order nom arising. Heaven is acting contrary to the normative pattern of human history and is blocking the path of a true sage_ This is a much stronger claim than anything in the LUIl,u. Confuciw believed that Heaven was responsible for (he stare of the way and rhat Heaven was destroying him by making Yan Hui dif; young. But Confucius never implif;d mat such acts stood in opposirion to a normative order. In contrast, Mencius d istinguishes between what

is right .and wha( Heaven acrually does. Although the two should .always accord, there are times, and Mencius clearly feels himself to be living in such a time, when they do not. For Mencius, unlike Zhuangzi, there is a porenti.al tension between [he claims of Heaven and those of the sage. And yet, what can one do! For Mencius the conclusion is clear: if there is a disjunction between the normative patterns and the decisions of Heaven, one must side with Heaven_ In Mencius' poliric.al rheology, one must accept what Heaven ordains and try to do so without resentment.

in Lee "turlcy', "Taward a Typology of Religiow lbought." I d.iscuu Yarley-I ovenll ugu_ 'ncllI concerning Mmd u. below. I,. I am reading the panage at revealing a 1e~1 or anger on Ihe Jnrl of Mcnciul. For 'OIntwhat different vic"" of tht p,UIa~ •• et Bloom, "Practicality and SpirilUality in Ihe MenclUJ"llnd Ivanhoe, "'" Q).Ietrlon orFailh."

,,0

'.'

ACCEPTING THE ORDER OP HEAVEN

ACCE PT ING THE ORDER OF HEAVEN

The commands of Heaven, therefore. do nOf necessarily agree with the normative order Heaven iuelf has given man the potential to realize. Sages have the potcnrial to bring order to the world. but Heaven can, for no apparent reason, thWart such pbns-even though it was Heaven that gave humans this potential in the first place. This is not to say dut Heaven is un· ethical, but .according (0 borh Confucius and Menciw, ethical action on the part of humans is nor enough. It is not the case that (he most ethical person will necessarily become a king o r even the sage become a minjster. The mandates of Heaven are simply beyond our understanding. Although Confuci.:mism is often portrayed u fundunenully optimistic. Menciw' argwnem is based on 2 very different cosmology. Calling it ~tragicH may be going tOO far. but Menciw clearly conceives a potential for tension between Heaven and man and advises us to side with Heaven. Indeed, we must side with Heaven and do so without rcu nnnent, even if what Heaven has decreed dearly contradicu the proper pattems." I therefore strongly agree with Lee Yearley, who focuses attention on what he calls Mirresolvable but revelatory and productive tensions.~ With Mencius, Yeatlcy lind:. -at one pole the notion of a human potential whose realization depends on each individual"s effort; at the other, the notion of a sovereign power beyond man that creates the potential but alSC! seems, in some way, to control and even frustrate iu completion in most or all men.·l ~ Indeed, we can probably take Yearley's inSight a step funher. For Mencius, it is not JUSt that Heaven frustrates the fuJfillment of t he potential mat Heaven itself gives; at times, Heaven seems to work actively to prevent it.

Zhuangzi arc oft-en presented as twin sides of naturalism: Mencius of the view that narore is moral and Zhuangzi of the view that it is amoral. For those scho lars like Frederick Mote who wish to argue mat early C hincu thinkers assumed a monistic cosmos, Mencius and Zhuangzi reprC5Cnt proof of that cosmology.1O Those who wish, to the contrary, to emphasize a tnnsccnden..u breakthrough argue that Zhuangzi's and Mencius' emphasis on nature provides them a basis to critique their world. For example, Benjamin Schwartz focuses on Zhuangzi's "affirmation of nature" and his use of that to critique the "analytical discriminating consciousness of man: Such a critique marks Zhuangzi (along with Laozi) as "me most radical apression of transcendence in China.: l 1 Mencius. according to Schwam, also roots values in Heaven, bur with the opposite implication; -If we contrast Mencius with his contemporary, Zhua.ngz~ we find here almost a defia.nt Confucian reply to Zhua.ngzi's view that the distinccly hunun consciousness. , . is precisely what alienates him from the J!lo: Instead, Schwartz argues, Mencius asserts that "moral consciousness" is the "transcendental instrument of human salvation that unites man to H eaven: If humans properly use the "transcendental 'heart within the heart'" that Heaven has given them, they "a.[e able to undentand the world in which they live, to feel at one with it and at one with Heaven: U For Schwam, then. both Zhuangzi and Mencius take naturalistic positions that emphasiu the unity of man and Heaven, and in both cases this emphasis allows for a transcendental position. The only difference between them. for Schwam, lies in the fact that Zhuangzi sees human moral consciousness as injuring man's harmonywim Heaven and Mencius sees human moral consciousness as the basis for building that ha.rmony. Heiner Roct1;, rypically, takes this transcendental position one step further and sees Mencius and Z huangzi :as ma.rking a new point in the progressive development of Chinese philosophy-a development consisting of a break fro m an earlier ma.glcal wo rldview and the posicing of norms separate

mat

The "Naturalism" ofZhuangzi and Mencius In terms of the links between H eaven and humanity, Zhuangzi is often portrayed as a purely naturalistic thinker, and Mencius is usually associated with the view that the linkage between them is moral. In both cases, however, there arc strongly felt tensio ns between the dilline ~pects of humans and the order of Heaven. This tension dearly contradicts me st2ndard reading of these twO thinkers. Mencius and Zhuangzi are commonly cited as the prototypical "naturalistic· thinkers of early China. Indeed, Mencius and

10. Morc, ror aarnpk, $ttS Menciw and Zhuangri:os representing opposKe polo of dlC. III11NutnfC continllum: Zhuangri a it~ man and valorizes nature,lnd Meno:iw valorizes mall and reads nature in tenru or 1IWl. ThIlS, Mote duracterizcs Zhumgzi:os projecting tl\( "idcal. ofliving , intply in hannony wilh naturc" and Mcndw ing tbe · wdl-being orllll",an lociety a, the mC:UllrC or Natllre', propc< fUnctioning" (/"ltII""f.w FO~""Alio~. oj 0.;114,

1, ....

,a. For dilTe~nr rudings or ,hex iWugu CIA m'"l' Itt Slin~rland, 'Thc Cooccpcion or Mi"lin Early Confucian Thollght"; and Ning. 'The Conccpt or Fate in Mcndw ." 19. La: H . Yurley, 'Toward a Typology orR.eligiow Thouslu." p. 41).

I'p. 14, St). 11. Schwanz. 'Traluccndcncc in Ancient Chin,; p. 66. 11. Schwlm,

'f1H. Worl.:l OJTltoUjll in A",itnl Cl!t1Ul, p. :ln.

,.,

ACCBPT I NG THE ORDBR OF H BAVBN

~om conven~ons. Thus~ he sees Z huangzi's "naturalism" as providing a ~cri-

r~que of the gwen order. But, Raetz claims, since Z hwngzi rejeces (onven_ non altogether. his naruralism is ultimately "; postconventional recourse to the preconvcncional past..•. In the final analysis, it constitutes a regressive lI evasion of de,ve!opmenr: ~oc(%'s r.e2ding of Z huangzi is essentially the same as Mort s and Schwanz s; (he difference lies in (he explicitly evolution_ ary framework Roett employs to interpret Z h\l2f1gzis narura!ism. With Mencius. however. Roea: provides an 2rgwn~nt thoU dese rves

closer scrutiny. ~osr previous scholars. with the txceprion of Lee Yurley,

have read MenclUs as assuming a linbge between humanity and nature. Roct'Z, consistent with his attempt to find in early China whu Weber claimed existed only in the West, sees Mencius' appeals to H eaven as an attempt to define norms separare from the world of convention: \'.'h.at ~s the role. then. within this ethics of cOlUpicuously nonrdigious ,df~nv~tlon, .of t~e no I~s striking appem; to Heaven:' That Mengti dings to Heaven LS no archaism, u HSiao Ku ng-chum hu called it. The reuon is because in doing so he cm bring his ethics into a marked contrut with the realities of his time and especially with politics. Heaven becomes an embodiment of mo ral no rms on which it confers irs distance from the world. M •

In short. Roet"2; finds in Menciw the very tension with the world that Weber thought was lacking in Confucianism: Through the concept of Heaven, Meng:ti can draw an ontological separation be[he realm of the moral nornu, among which humaneness, u the 'moSt hon_ ored of the ranh of Heaven; holds the highest position, and the realm of me mundane authorities. \'.'hat he formulates is no less than a counterparT of the occidental teaching of the 'twO kingdoms: It was this teaching which essentially contributed to the vCf}' 'tension with the world' that Weber contrutcd with the alleged Confucian readiness for adaptation." tween

If fo~ Mote Meneius represents an attempt to read humanity into nacu re, and If Schwartz reads Mencius as positing a transcendenta.! consciousness thar allows for a unity of man, society, and nature, RoctZ rC2ds Mencius as conceiving. for the first rime in Chinese history, a tension with the world.

n Raetz. Omfweill" Ethlu of lilt .... xi.,J ligt, pp. :l45/, 151, 157. lot . Ibid.,

l S. Ibid.

p. '96.

ACCEPTING TH E ORDBR OF HB AVBN

.,

But Raetz is again too dependent on the Weberian paradigm. There is indeed a Strong tension in Meneius, but irs object is very different !Tom the one Raen wants to read inro me tradition. Raetz. in a sense, has it b",ckwards: the tension in Meneius is nOt wim the world but with H e",ven. O r, more p"'rticularly, it is between H e",ven ",nd the divine potenrials of humans. Meneius is not arguing for a Weberian type of transcendence in which H eaven is the source of ideals that conflict wim the mundane happenings of this world. The teruion ruru the om er way: it is Heaven that is potentially in conflict with the proper order of man (even if H e",ven is the ultimate source of that potential for order within man). Although I disagree with Roerz's Weberian framework in general and his reading of Mencius in particular. his stress on tension rather chan harmony in his reading of Mencius is of interest, I would suggest that perhaps one reasOn ~transcendence· has become so influential a term in early China studies (beyond the attempt to argue that early Chinese thought meets one of W eber's standards of ration",lity) is precisely because it aUows scholars, while working wimin a generally Weberian framework, to discuss tensions that clearly are there in the tCXfS. For chose like Schwam who wish to argue that early Chinese thinkers did assume a ha rmo nious cosmos, the notion of transcendence is a way of dealing with the tensions they find in early Chinese thought- tensions chac a purely Weberian emphasis on harmony would rend to deny. In other words, the notion of transcendence allows scholars to avoid me dangers of reductionism chat would result from reading early Chinese thinkers as assuming a harmonious cosmos. I suspeCt, for example, that Schwam's somewhat ungainly notion of transcendence within immanence (discussed in m e Introducrion) was intended to do pncisc.ly this. And, for those scholars like Raetz who wish to rejeer the notion of an immanentist cosmology (at least for certain Warring S(2tes thinkers), me norion of transcendence allows them to argue, in essence, tha t the ~tension with the world" found by Weber in P rotestantism existed in early China as well But, if we tu m away from me Weberian framework and its emphasis on harmony, we can see mese tensions in a different and, I think. more powerful way, I have argued in rhis chapter that both Z hu.angzi and Mendw should be read in the context of the developing claims concerning the potentially divine capacities of humans and the porential conflicts between such claims and notions of Heaven,

'44

ACCEPTING THE ORDER Of HEAVEN

Menciw, like m.any thinkers of the fourth century Be, made strong claims that divine powers resided in humans, and for Mencius this mum [hat humans have the potential to bring order to [he world. H Ulltn, in contraSt, while being [he source of those divine powers in humans, can potentially prevent the order that it has given humans the power to create. T he cennal tension fo r Mencius, then, is that although Heaven is the ultimate source of mora1 parcems, it can and does arbitrarily act in opposition to those patterns. And yet we must :accept what H eaven commands. Zhuangzi also felt this tension, bur he resolved it in a very different way: Zhuangzi denied chat H eaven is the source of moral norms and thus denied that H eaven h.ad [0 follow such norms. For Zhuangzi. moral norms
4 Descendants of the one Correlative Cosmology in the Late Warring States

Let us tecum

to

the origin of the cosmos:

Heaven and Earth h:ui a beginning. Heaven was subtle so as to complete, and Earth blocked so as to give form. Heaven and Earth combining and harmoni:cing i5 the grear alignment ving) of generation (lbtng).l [n the cosmogony sketched in the "Jingshen" chapter of the Huaimmzi-the l passage with which I opened this book-spirits aligned (jing) the cosmos. This passage from the"Y oushi chapter of the LUlhi ,hun'llu, a ten that dates to around 240 BC , posits neither spirits nor H eaven as active agents in the formation of the cosmos. Instead, Heaven and Earth simply emerge spontaneously, and their mating. which gives birth to the myriad things, is the llignment of gener:l.tion itself. Cosmological arguments like these began appearing at about the s2rlle rime as the self-divinizarion movements described in Chapter 2.. They ranged from five-phase specu~tion to monthly ordinlnces to lrtemptS to place culture within cosmogonic schemata. Like the self-divinization cbims, such cosmological frameworks were used to argue thlt a sage can, through variously defined processes of self-cultivation, achieve [he power to understand the workings of the cosmos and thereby act correctly and gain control over them. I. LQ,bi tb~"qi~, "Yowhi: Il.I~. ). S« Chapm 7, pp. )70- .... fot?- denUed discw.ion of fhil fen.

'4'

DBSCENDANTS OF THB ONE

The nature of early Chinese corrc:lative thought hu been a topic of lengthy discussion in both anthropological and sinologiul studies. Marcel Mauss and Emile Durkheim first proposed the famous thesis thac conly Chinese correlative thinking was based on ·primitive classific.arion" sYS(cms,J According to them. such systems in China were "a highly typical case in which colleerive thought has worked in a reflective and ie:arncd way on themes rh.ar arc dearly primirivc."4 This thesis dearly fits the recurrent argumma of ,inclogins tnat China's significance lies in the degree to which it maintained (for bener or worse, depending on the criteria of the scholar in question) 1inb to a primitive, primordial period of human history. Although Marcel Gn.net did not develop M2USS'S and Durkheim's compuarive claims, their ~iological appr();lch exercised. an imporu.nr influence on Granet's analysis in LA lXnJie chinoiSt',s itself the single most influential work ever published on conly Chinese cosmology, Largely because of Gr.anet's work. Chinese correlative thought has come to play an imporrant role in the anthropological study of cosmology. Claude Uvi-Scrauss's Th Savage M ind, a landmark study of primitive classification systems that superseded Mauss's and Durkheim's earlier work on the subject, for example, relics heavily on Graner. In this chapter, I attempt [0 re-examine (he origins and nacure of correlative thinking in early C hina. I begin by surveying the secondary literature on the topic. in particular anthropological studies of s;l.crifice and cosmology and the ways that sinologists have borh contributed to and wo rked from this Iirerature. I then [race the rise of correbtive thought in the late W.arring SUtes period and argue for a somewhat different .approach ro using the insights of .anthropological studies of correluive sysrems. The One ~d the Many: Second.ary Schobrship on E.arly Chinese Cosmology The discussion of early Chinese cosmology hu boch influenced .and been influenced by anthropological analyses. Indeed, much of the scholarship on this issue hu developed u scholars positioned themselves in diffe rent ways in relation [0 the work of Graner or Uvi-Srrauss. I. too, will argue rhat an

) . Ourkheim and MaUll, Pri",iri •• a.,"ifoarion, pp. 61-80. ... Ibid" p. 1). S· Grmel .dmowlcdgcllhc debe in LoI pt~* ,billOiu, pp. .. h - &,"u.

DBSCENDANTS OF T H E ONB

'47

alternative reading of Granet and Uvi-Srrauss might lead to.a more success-

ful approach to m e problem of Chinese correlative (hought. ~ discussed in the Introduction. A. C. Graham criticizes Granet for reading Warring States and Han correlative models u characteristic of Chinese chought in general and .argues instead that correlative thought is universal and exists in all forms of thinking save one: "'What Graner saw u the difference between Chinese and Western thought may now.adays be seen u .a transcultural difference between proto-science and modem science:' In malcing chis argwnenr. Graham presents hinuclf u rejecting Graner and favoring Levi-Strauss: -In exploring pro(o-scicntific chinking it hu been usual to starr from wh.at we find peculiar in pre-modern views of nature; here we have followed the enmple of Levi-Strauss (although not the det.ail of his methods) in sarting from the opposite direction. from structures common to pre-modem and modern thinlcing.~7 For Grah.am. late Warring Sutes and Han cosmological systems should be understood u a particular. highly formalistic, example of an essentially human w.ay of thinking. David H .all and Roger Ames position themselves on the opposite side of each of these claims. T hey strongly defend Gr.anet·s argument that correlative thinking was a defining feature of Chinese thought in general. OlI1d they reject Graham's cla.im that GrOll1et's .arguments apply only to (exu from che late Warring StlIres .and after. Hall and Ames trace Graham's -error- to Uvi-Strauss: Uvi-Strauss. they cla.im, misread Marcel Graner', arguments . about correlative thinking. and Gr.aham unfortunately based his reading on Uvi-Strauss. [Graham] appeals explicitly to the theory of corrdarivity devdopcd by Qaude Uvi&rauss. Levi-Scraws had formalized the senu of corrdarivity conwned in Mared Grands lA pmlie chilloil( by r«ouru (0 the work of Roman JakoNon.... LeviStrauss applies Jakobson's nroons of similarity and conriguity rdatioru to Marcd Granet', speculations concerning the "Chinese mind: furmil ing thar what Granet had called corrdative thinking could be formalized by recourse to the metaphor/metonym dUtincrion.... With this iruight, so Levi·Straws believed, the nolion of condativity gained clarity and rigor. Applying this insight to [he Chinese clllploymcnt of analogical thinking. it would be possible, for example. [0 understand

6. Graham, DilpWItI'l 0/ I'" T~D, p.l~O . ? Gr.hOlIll. YIN' Y~"l ,,,., 1M N'I~rr of CorrrlArI.t Thi"ki~l' p. )g,

,.8

'.9

DESCENDANTS OF THE ONE

DESCBNDANTS OF THB ONS

the vast syncms of classification associated with Jill.yang cosmologiu or the Book of

Uvj·$rr:.tuss·s attempc to generalize correl:ltive thinking ended up limiting the ffianing of che concept-:lnd led Graham to restrict ies applicability to only late Warring States and H an texts. N should be clear from my discussion in C hapters I and 2., I side with Graham on this pan icular poinr: correlative cosmology is a late development in Chinese h istory. The problem is t hen to explain how and why it emerged. One recent attempt to do so is [hat of John H enderson. Hender~n's Devtl· opmmt and Dalinr ojChintJt CoJmolDgy is a brilliant narrative of che history of correlative t hought in Chin~ Although t he quescion of rhe emergence of such thinking occupies only :l small ponion of this narrative, H en derson's comments are no netheless provocative: "M y own view o n th is question is that corre!:.ttive systems in C hina were devised in a fully h istorical epoch, particularly [he t hird and second centuries B.C ., for !:.trgely historical reaH sons. Among the po$Sible scen:lrios adduced by H enderson for the rise of correlative cosmologies is tha t particular philosophers created an Hepistemo_ logical space (as Michel Foucault might say) in which correlative thought could develo p." An example would be Laozi's C:llling on man ro Hpauern himself after heaven and earth.~ As a consequence, "later and lesser minds could interpret t he classical T aoi.s[ calls for [he harmonization of ma n and nature in a literalist fashion, devising an:ltomic:ll, numerological, and ll psychologic:.tl correspondences: In this view, correlative cosmology is a liter:.tl reading by lesser minds of a metaphor. The problem with this explan:ltion is that it unnecessarily d enigrates correlativiry and fails [0 explain why greater minds of a l:lrer period found correlativity convincing. Another explanation offered by H enderson is institution:.tl. In the Qin H and early Han, "imperial ideologists invoked correlative thought as a mean.s ofjustifying imperi:.tl governance:

dxJ"l"J by appeal (0 these tropic deviccs.' But Uvi-Str2IW'S attempt to analyze correlative thought more rigorously nude it less applicable to China: We are inclined to believe thar the attempt" [0 formalixe meaJUlogicai mode of chink· ing by appeal to Jakoblon'llpa:u/atiolU has in faa overly rarion.ilizcd anzIogial. first problematic thinking and made it, while more precise and rigorous as a method, less applicable to the Chinese tontar. The burden of the foUowing discUssion will be to reinstitute the fonner, mo re naive understanding of analogical thought.'

Indeed. the very distinction of metaphoric and metonymic relations is for

Hill and Amu an example of the tional. causal assurnptions."IO

~rational inteUccc~

and is hued on "ra-

The problem with Graham. Hill and Ames argue, is thar. by following [he mort formalistic reading of Uvi-Str:luss, he was led to believe th:n correlative thought arose late in Chinese hinory. A rerum to Graner wlll correct this error. Graham', judgment char corrdarive thought i5 [0 be consigned to perio
Ames • .... "ti
Through che invocarion of the "mutual conquesc" sequence of the five phases, by which earth (H an) conquers water (Q in), the H:m was able to junify its overthrow of Qin rule md its usumption of power. Once the dynuty wu established. impe rial ideologists also found it useful CD invoke rhe hierarchical rdation of yang to yin :md heaven co earth ;u a way oflcgitimating various authoritarian political and social reo lationll. 14

S. Hill and ~. Ibid.,

Hendcnoll, Tht Dfwk>p",,"t~..J O.di"
I).

.,0

Cricics o f imperial rule then appropriated com:b.tive thought ~as checks on Han imperial de.!pori.sm.~l' But this explanation 21so has problems. If correl· ativity arose as a means of impcriallegicimacion, why did the intended audience find it convincing? A3 with any argument in temu of legitimation. one

needs (0 explain why the ideology was effective. Yet anomer rcason given by H enderson was mol[ corrcLative thinking was utilized by Hm thinkers to ·weav(eJ diverse ' (n nds of the ciassical urcrary legacy into a consistent whole. .16 But correbtivity emerged before the Han and not in texts du[ could plausibly be seen as ammpts to unify the literary

rradirion. Although I have questioned Henderson's explanations (and I emphasize .1Ig
& we will see, some correlative systems in m e Warring States md Han are indeed Insed on generative models, and many do quite explicitly play o n an· cesto r sacrifices in their discw.sions. Schwartz sees mis as a continw.tion o f a mind-set datable to the S hang, But this explanation in fact explains JinJc. The fact that the S hang worshipped ancestors does not uploin why later authors built generative correlative systems, The question remains: Why did the aumors in question choose ( 0 appropru.te sacrificiallangu
IS· IbKI., p. l7. uS. Ibid .• p. 41. 17. Schwanz, 1M

W~rIJ ~fn-tn;~ A",iml

0,;"'" p. 16.

.,.

DSSCBNDAN T S OF THB ON E

DII SCII NDANTS OF THII ONE

Schwartz's response is to say mat the family metaphor was highly importam in China-II I have already questioned Schwams attempt: t o read famil· iaI holism and a continuiry between the human and divine as guiding o rien· tations in early C hina, and I will continue thar questioning in this chapter, But the complexities of Schwartz's arguments warran t careful anention, Schwutz argues that earlier sacrificial practice in China should not be read in correlative tertllS. Sacri6ce
mu

The fact u that neither the oracle bones, the bronze: vessds, no r any of the earliest tau we have seem to provide strong evidence of corrduive cosmology, even though some discern evidence of totemism in the iconography of the Shang ritual bronze: vessels. Much of the informacion furnished in these ilUCriprions sheds light not on correlative cosmology, but on what Uvi-Strauu would hinudf define as the real m of religion. Corrdarive cosmology in his vicw is a "science of the concrete" b«ause it rdates concrete phenomena acrually perceived in our ordinary experience to each other "horizontally." Ir.s materials ace all drawn from the "real" world. Animals, planr.s, the four cardinal directions, kinship organizationJ, human trair.s, and cdes· rial bodies ue aII "real .~ A religious ritual-specifically the ritual of sacrifice-which rdates humans "vertically" to goda and spirir.s represenr.s in mu view an effof[ to es' tablish "a desired connection berwcc:n twO initially separate domaiiU; of which one- the divine-is non.existent. I '

IS. Ibid., pp. 416- 17. III. Ibid .. pp. )~I -S~·

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DBSCENDANTS OF THB ONE

DBSCENDANTS OF T H B ONE

Schwartz [hw rejects Grands :argument that correlative thinking shou1d be read a5 perv;ading early Chinese thought. Even if we adopt Levi-Strauss'! own terminology-the very terminology developed to argue the pervasiveness of correlative thinking-we are forced. SchW2rt'Z argues, [0 see thar Chinese correbtivc thinking is a late development. Ironically. this reading of Levi·Scrauss is compa.f2ble to that of Hall and Ames.. Hall and Ames hope to demonstrate thar coml.uive thinking defines all of Chine.se thought. and Schwam is arguing for a grot_raJ movement nom religion to philosophy, but all three believe ~t Uvi-Smws's position, despite its overt claims for the univers.a1ity of correlative minking. leads to a rejection of Graner and to the position thar correbtive systems 2re late developments in China. H:oll and Ames therefore reject Uvj·Strauss's p»irion, whereas Schwa rt% agrees with ir. Although, like Schwartz, I argue that correlative cosmology is .a l.ate development in China, I nonetheless dis.agree with his (and Hill .and Ames's) relding of Uvi-Smuss. Schwartz is misrelding Uvi-Stuuss, .and his misrelding is worth follOWing in derlil, for a closer re.ading of Livi-Str.auss, lS well :.I.S of Granet, will leld to a somewhu different, .and perh.aps more promising. .approach to the problem.

T o temism .and 5.acrifice: From Graner to Uvi-Srr.auss and Back Ag.ain In the p.assage quO(ed by SchWllU, Levi·Strauss refers to the discinction be· tween "so·cilled" totemism md Slcrifice.2(I In so·cilled totemism, two discontinuous series (human c!:.tns .and nuur:.t.l species) are presented lS m.alogies. In contnst, SlcMce "seeks ro establish a desired connection between twO initi.ally sep.anre domains. "Slcrifice therefore belongs to [he realms of continuity:ll According [ 0 Schwut:z. this distinction, when applied ro H

3.0. The ft::llOn Uvj·Srr:l.LlU wei -ro-caIIed" in referring to rotemism is tNt ho!: argues $Ironglyagainst the oregor)' of"rotcmism" 10 describt; rhe phenomenon of social groups con. necring Ihcnuelvu wirh animals. Uvj,Slrauu', ~ic movt: here is to sub.mme 1M caregory under a urger lheory of IfructUral cbs.$iJ'Kalion: 'Sorricuur case of 1M general problem of classification and one of many examples of the parr whio;:h sp«£ terml oRen puy in Ihe working oul of a socia] cl;wiflCalio,," (110. Mimi, p. 6a). For his full cTiliquc of the term, su Uvj·StraWI, TOltmi'm. s"me of Ltvi,Su'aUN', modv~ ­ liom for providing this argument arc disc'w,ed below. 11. Ltvi,SlraUII, 'Tht Mi~d, pp. n. -~s; herr:inaner ciled in II", tut.

s...,.gt

s..""tt

."

China, reve.al.s
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DBSCBNDANTS O F THB ONS

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torcmism and s:lcrifice are [wo distinct systems: one does not lead to the

In other wo rds, for Levi·Strauss mere are [WO legitimate fomu of science: the science of the concrete (found in ro reruism ) and modern science:

other. H e emphatic2l1y rejects the tendency in earlier anthropology to present (orcmism and sacrifice along evolutionary lines: "That it should h:tvc been possible to regard totemism 15 the origin of sacrifice in the histOry of religion remains, after so long. a marrer of as(onishmcm~ (p. .1:13). UviStrauss's move here is to defend the complexity of clas5ificatory schemes in primitive cultures by denying that fotcmism represents an earlier, superseded period in the development of civilizations. Instead, he argues, the clas. sificatory systems of the great civili22cions afC not b.ued on tOccmism (see, e.g., p. +.1). On the contrary. T he great civilizations of Eurasia are monoge. neric: "This perhaps explains what one is tempted to COlli the 'totemic void; for in the bounds of the great civilizations of Europe and Asia there is a remarkable absence of anything which might have reference [0 totem ism, even in the form of remains~ (p. 131). And not only is totemism not a superseded level of culture, but it is in fact scientifically superio r to Slcti l1ce: Totemic d a.uificariollJ have a doubly obj«tive buis. There rally arc natural species, and they do indeed form a discontinuous series; and social segments for their pan: also enst.... The system of sacrifice. on the other hand, makes a pre.exiltellt term, divinity, intervene; and it adopt's a conception of the natural series which is false from the objective point of view. for, as we have seen, it represents it u continuo OUI •••• The system of sacrifice . .. represents a private discourse wanting in good selUe for all that it nuy frequently be pronounced. (pp. 111-18) Totemic systems are objecrively valid. since they recognize d iscontinuity from the beginning. In contrast, sacrifice is ~wanting in good sense,~ since sacrificial systenu believe in continuity-and th is is, from an ~objective point of view,~ wrong. Uvi·Strauss's polemic is not a passing rhetorical flo urish. One of the recurrent arguments in Th S~\lagt Mind is that toremism is JUSt as logical as modern science. It is simply a d ifferent form oflogic (po 169), a form that he calls wa science of the concrete- (pp. 1-35). And the crucia.! point about this science of the concrete is that it builds classifications based on an objecrively accurate understanding o f natural strUCtures (pp. 1-35, 135-61). N ote, for ex. ample, how Uvi· Srrams describes the idt2 of species in totemism: "We shoWd understand how rhis idt2 can furnish a mode of sensory apprehen. sion of a combination objettively glven in nature, and that me activiq' of the mind. and social life itself. do no more than borrow it to apply it to the crea. tion of new taxonomies" (p. 1)1).

'55

un:ainly the properties to which the savage mind h..u access are not the same ;u those which have commanded the mendon of scientist$. The physical world is approached from opposite ends in Ihe twO cues: one is supremdy concrete, the other supremdy abstract; one proceeds from the angle of sensible qualities and the other from that of formal properties. But the idea that, theoretically at least and on condi· tion no abru pt' changes in perspective occurred, these twO courses were destined to meet, expiaillJ why both, independently of each other in time and s~. should have led to tWO dininct tho ugh equally positive sciences. (p.16\l)

So where d oes modern science come from~ If it is not based on toremism, is it based upon Slcrifice~ Uvi·Srrau.ss does nor make an explicit statement on this point, but r suspect that he wo uld Sly thu modern science aro~ with the tr~1l 1ullding of the sacrificial model. T otemism is a science (a science of the concrete), but the model of sacrifice is o bjectively wrong. :and it needed to be overcome before a different, abscract science could arise. Uvi· Srrau.ss is C.agey on why this happened, but it is del r thlt he see.s the crucial step as the in troduction of lbstraction in t2 rly Greece: ~ A dramatic ch:ange took place alo ng the frontiers of Greek thought, when mythology gave way to philosophy and the latter emerged:tS the necessary pre-condition of scientific thought ...n In other words, he is working with a version of rhe ~religion to philosophY- argument. Moreover, he appears to view modern science as a unique crt2tion of t he We.st, the one Eurasian civilization t hat transcended t he sacrificial model. Given th is frlmework. what would Levi·Strauss say .about China~ Levi·Strauss says almost nothing about China in his voluminous writings, but r mink it is safe to Sly th.at Levi·Strauss would not be sympatheric to C hinese correlative thought. A nd for pr«i~IJ t he same reasons that fig. ures fro m Weber to Raea have dis paraged Chinese con:elative thought: Chinese correlative thought fails to recognize me objective existence of discon tinuities-the discontinuities that, the implicit ltgument goes, proved crucial for the emergence o f modern science. The only difference is that Uvi· S trauss would nor see Chinese correlat ive thought as primitive: unlike so many scholars-from Mauss and Durkheim to K. C. Chang-who see

."

."

DSSCBNDANTS OF THB ONS

DESCENDANTS OF THE ONE

the uniqueness of China as lying in ilS imim.ate connection [0 a primitive past, Levi-Strauss would nOI sec primitive thought in China;I;(.alI. Similarly. Levi-Strauss would nor agree with Graham's presentation ofChinese correlative systems as simply :mother example (along wirh "primitive thought") of "prom-science," One suspects that for Li;v j·$rrauss, Chinese correlariviry would hlve involved an objectively incorrect claim of continuity. Primitive thought. in contrast, is [0 be found in rorcmism-a system that. like modem science. bur in a different WOly. :accunucly recognizes {he truth of discontinuity. But where does [his leave the study of early China~ As the vast majority of scholars who have studied early Chinese corrcbtivc thought have noted, Uvi·Strau~'s analyses arc: invaluable for [he exploration of classification systcnu. But if we chOOK not to follow Uvi-Strauss's polemic, ,an we u least use his tcrminology more effe'[ively~ First, is China monogenetic~ I will argue no. Even ifSchw;!ft% is slightly misrepresenring Uvi-Strauss's argument, Schwam's intuition th;![ Chin;! nnnot be successfully defined ;!ccording to one pole of Uvi-Strauss's terminology is nonetheless correct. I wilt go even further ;!nd question Uvi-Str;!uss's mempt to distinguish polygenesis and monogenesis in the form rhu he does: ca.tegorizing entire ,uitures on the basis of such a dualisric framework is precisely what we should avoid in comparuive studies. Marshall Sahlins h;!$ suggested;! W;!y of utilizing Uvi-Str.luss'S distinctions in a more nuanced W;!y. As noted above. Uvi-Str.luss cites Polynesi;! u an example of;! monogenetic system-a system that defined everything as based on ;! single continuous line of descent. Sahlins, an expert on Polynesia, h.u modified this by poinring our d12t this description, while ;!ccuute, refers only to one set of claims; other groups, in the same culture. emphasize polygenesis:

Certain groups define society and the cosmos monogenetically; others define it polygenetically. Historical analysis involves, :unong other things. the study L_ _L .•• ~ of me inurp1;!y uctween wese competing VISions. Gregory Schrempp. one ofSahlins's students, hu developed these .arguments for [he Maori through his norion of;! "dual formulation,~ which he defines as -the co-existence of twO different conceptions of the essential lS character and identity of a given concrete social unit:' These two conceptions correspond closely to Uvi-Strauss's distinction betwun monogenesis and polygen6is. Schrempp argues that Maori cosmogonic nurarives can be grouped into twO distincrive positions-posicions that, Schrempp points 16 out, can be mapped successfully with Kant's antinomies. Ka.nt·s argument is that. in the history of Western metaphysics, one can flIld twO distinctive, and murually contradictory, positions. Take. for example, Ka.nt's second antinomy in the PTokgomcnClto An] Future MetClphysics:

It appean in Fiji as the interehangeable contrast between unitary lineage organizarion of the $ocial totality, an encompa.nment of the whole in the ancestry of a divine king (J
'Y'-

a). Sahlitll, "Foreword: p. l[.

Thesi5: Everything in the world ,onsim ofldementl that are] simple. Antithesis: There is nothing simple. but everything is compo.ite. Z7 According to Schrempp, Maori thought, just like Western metaphysics, can 21 be categorized inw one of these twO positions. And, what is more significant, the twO constantly play off each other, To revert [0 Uvi-Str.luss·s terminology. neither monogenesis nor polygenesis is a founding assumption: rather, the twO co-exist, and their antirhesis endlessly gives rise ro further developments in cosmological thought. This way of using Levi-Strauss's terminology points toward a means of explic:l[ing the complexities of competing cosmological formulations in a given culture. How do va rious cosmologies posit continuity and discontinuity, and what are the implications of this positing:' And how do these competing cosmologies playoff against one anorher? ru we wills«, in the case of early China. this is a crucial quesrion for working through the correlative cosmologies poSited in the late Warring Stares and early Han. 14. For rd.r~d arguments by SaWios', nudenu for ocher areu or Pol)'fl"Si2.,. s« Vakri, "ComtitUl.M History", Schrelnpp. M"tic,,1An"CI"'s; and Michul ScOtI, "Auhen=" lS, Schrempp, Mazic'" Amn<>I, po. 64.

16. Ibid .. pp. I)7-63.

17. Kam , P,oIrl"m,"' to An, FUlu ,t M."pb,.ill. p. 87. A fuller diKWJ;on can ~ found in Kam. Criti~u. ofPwrr .RrAJ.On, pp. 4oa- !i. a8. For Schrempp'l diKuniotl or INrallelt befwectl the second amlnomy and alpecCl or

Maori thoughl, I« M'zitlll Am"", pp. 14i-n·

·s·

·s.

DESCIIND"NTS OF THII ONE

DESCENDANTS Of THS ONS

Thus, although I have questioned Schwam:'s prescnu.rion of Uvi. Srr.r.uss, I foUow Schwartz in arguing thar U vj·Scnuss's terminology may be

temK and that kingship arose when particular figures-the ancient S2gessacrificed the totemic animals and caprured their power. Fo r example, according to Granet, the owl was the totemic wemblmt of Huangdi. but Huangdi captured and devoured an owl Similarly, Yao had to conquer the sun befote he could become a king: "Yao, the sovereign, •.• had to aim arrows at the sun before he could become a Son of H eaven. Thus he succeeded in overcoming his celestial double. As soon as he had conquered t he w11 emblem of the sun, he was worthy to reign. Granet's reco nstruction is not convincing in terms of the sinological materials; nor, I would agree with Uvi-Strauss, is it convincing theo reticaUy. Uvi-S trauss would certainly be correct in saying that Granet's decision to analyze early C hina in terms of a shift from totemism to S2crifice was unfortunate. But if we accept Uvi·Srraws's critique of Graner's evolutionism, we shouJd also accept Sahlins's critique ofUvi-Smuss's fonn o f cu1tural classification. All of this leaves us in a very interesting place when reading Graner. Mon of Graner's sources were late Warring Scates or Han texu, and t he issues Granet wu discus.sing as an evolution from totemism to sacrifice could, Ia. Uvi·Strauss and Sahlins, be worked out in terms of the ways thar vari-

e:r:tremely helpful in sorring

OUt

C hinese correlative thought bur due it

should be utilized in a new way. It will also be helpfUl to rerum

(0

Graner.

but in a W2y very different from thar of Hall and Ames. I .agree with Hall and Ames that we should attach much significance [0 way Uvi.Sruuss built his ideas on t he foundation o f Graner. but I will argue th::t the implications point in the opposite directio n. Although Uvi-Strauss is repe.uedly read in the sinologica.l literature as having claimed that all ~prim itiveH thinking is bued on the principles Graner discovered, the actwl development of this thinking was f.u more complex. A1though Uvi-Srraws built much of his strucrural ouulyses on Graner. he consistently charged Granet with failing to develop his ideu rigorously. For example, Uvi-Strauss faults me analysis of Chinese kinship structures in Granet's CllffgoritJ matrimollillb cf re14ticIIJJ de proximifi dllllS Ia Chille c;lmiellJ1t:

me

In this work, a sinologist provides a dtdsive contribution to the general theory of kinship 'ynenu, but he presents his discoveries in the guise of Chinese material, and as interpretatioru of rhCi material However, when cOlUidered fro m this pw:icular angle, these inrerprec:atioIU stem confused and contradictory, and sinologists have received them suspiciously, even when their own analyses were not contrary to them. Here, then, is a specialise who perhaps uctteU his proper role, but he succtteU in arriving at theorerical truths of a wearer and more general significance.111 And I suspect that Uvj-Srrauss would reach a simwr conclusion about Granet's analysis of correlative thinking: invaluable for theory bur confused for China. More specifically, I suspeCt rhat Uvi-Strauss thought that G raner treated China too much like a totemic system, when it in fact was, by Levi-Strauss's reckoning. a monogenetic system. More important, t hough, Levi-Strauss would have rejected Graner's overall analytical framework. As mentioned above, Uvi-Strauss strongly opposed an evolutionary reading of totemism and sacrifice. Such a. ITamewo rk has a long pedigree and was most famously argued by William Roberaon Smith. But it is a. pedigree that includes Granet. Indeed, the shift &om totemism to S2crifice is o ne of the underlying themes of Granet's evolutionary reading of early C hina. )(I Granet arguts that early C hinese society was (0-

19. Uvj·Scnwl, TIlt EInn.~tG'J St'IIfC~ rtI ofKlrublp, p. )11. )0. S« Granef, [),anstl rt "ttNitl .It '" OIl'" t""I.~IW'.

a

ous textS posit contin uity and discontinuity. With this in mind, let us rerum to Granet. G ranet's point in emphasizing thar t he early cultural heroes conquered emblems was mat the origins of Chinese correlative t hougbr do not lie in an attempt: to make me social world correspond to the na!!!.ral world. Rather, the lim necessity of the ruler is to furnish humans with the emblems thar allow them to domesticare nature. The emblems signal, for each ~ing. in natun:;u well as ifs place and position ill the world. In the first days of Chinese civilization, HU21lgdi acquired the glory of 2 heroic founder, for he saw the need to give all things a COtfect name. ... "To rellder the names correct" is, in effect, the first of governmental obligatiofU. Jl T his is why Graner emphasized thar emblems were initially totems conquered by man: man did nor so much recogn ize correlations beN'een the social and the natural worlds as create correlations by appropriating. domesticating. and placing narural objects within a framework mar allows for human consumption and control.

pp. 197- 98 . Grann, 1.41 ,,1IJIt ,111Il0l1<, p. 47·

)1. GnIlICC, a,/~tJt eM/lullon, ) 1.

.6.

DESCBNDANTS OF THE ONE

OI!SCENOANTS OF THE ONE

Removed from its evolutionary fr2mcwork of a shift from toremism to sacrifice, Graner's argument yields something dose to what Sahlins was pointing rowlrd: :I. correlative cbim of continuity between humanity and nature was designed, and continues to function. only in opposition ro an opposing claim of discontinuity. Or. in Uvi·SrI'2USS'S cenninology, there is both polygenesis and monogenesis here. and neither can be undersrood without the other.

One. but it is placed within l generltive process thlt it does not control. Huven is not l porenrWly clpricious power here; it is l plrt of linger

.60

The Great Unity of the Cosmos: The Ta iyi shtng mui The T aiJi sMl1g Jhui, a text discovered in the Guodian tomb 2nd probably Wi ring to the late fourth century lie, JI describes a ,osmogony focused on T aiyi :;t - , the Gre:n One. In this text, T liyi is the force char gives birth [0 the cosmos. )4 The Grear One givu birth to water. Water goa back and supplemenrs [i,e., joins with] the Great One. They thereby complete Heaven. He:lven goes back and supplemems the Great One. They thereby complete Earth. Heaven and Earth [return and supplement each otherJ.u In this opening portion of the cosmogony. the Great One is the primary power. It initially generates. on iu own. water. Water and the Great One then join to give birth to H eaven. Then Heaven and the Great One combine to make the Earth. The Great One not only begins the process with a direct birth (without anoth er partner). but it continues to be the force with which each successive substance copulates to complete the next subsunce. This process reaches its conclusion once both Heaven and Earth have been completed. Contrary [0 most early Chinese cosmologies, Heaven is not the highest power. Not only is H eaven subordiIured to the Great

n . For ~ dis<:uuion of the Guodian find. I « "Jingmen Guodian yi hao Chu mu: For analyses of the Guodian run. 1«. in ~nicuhr. Aibn md Willianu. Th< GuoJ...." r......d; md Guo Yi. GWoJ .... 1I dlvji'''l'' ,,;'ftQift lII/n/,u liN"g.

H. Rdatively little a known about Taiyi. He wu evidently a god in at least the southern during d,~ pre-Han period. He appean. for example. in the BaO.Mn divination tUti !Tom the Hale of Chu ill the fourth C CIltUry IC. For an excelkm analyla of the palcognophic referCllCti to Taiyi. set Li Ling. "All Archaeological Study of Taiyi (Gr:lI\d O~) Wonhip: )s. T'iyi Jbtllg shwi.1trip J; hereinafter Ifrip numbe,. arc givcn in the 'text; the entire telU U rcprO
proces.su:.t.! movement. Following the completion of Helven and Earth. the subsunccs begin copulating lmong them.sdvcs. without the Great One: Heaven and Earth

join together lnd complete rwo more substances. which in (Urn copulate and complete {WO more; They thereby complete the spirits and the illuminated (shtn "'ing). The spirits lfld the illuminated reru m and supplemem each ochee. They thereby complete the yin and yang. Yin and yang return lnd supplement each other. They thereby complete (he four sasona. The four sasons return and supplement each other. They thereby complete the cold and hot. Cold and hor return and supplement each other. They thereby complete the Wet and dry. The Wet and dry return lfld supplement each other. They thereby complete the year lfld then StOp. (Strip.ll-4) Of interest here is thlt III these figures. from the Grelt One through Heaven. Earth. the spirits, lnd the illuminlted (,htn ming). were gods lnd spirits who received cult It the time. The authors o f this text lre rhus building their cosmology from lcrwl gods lnd relding them simply :.I.S subst:r.nccs in l b:.t.!anced cosmos. The next subsunces mentioned in the cosmology ne the cold and hot lnd the wet lnd dry. The combinltion of the second p:.tir results in the formltion of the yelr. lnd this brings the process to its end. The cosmos is thus fonned when the wet lnd the dry result in the nnurll generation of the year. The tCX[ then reclpirulate.s the process lnd underlines dut it all beg:an with the Grnt One: Therefore. the year W:l$ generated by Wet and dry. W et and dry were generated by cold and hot. Cold znd hot were generated by the four SUSON. The four seasons were generated by yin and yang. Yin and ylflg were generated by the spiriu and the illuminated The spirits and the illuminated were generated by Heaven and Earth. Haven and Eanh were generated by the G reat One. (Strips ...-6) H owever. the text d rlws l further conclusion as well; the Grelt One pervades III that was generated from it lnd is in fact lctive in the se:.l.Sons them" .elves: Therefore rhe Great One is no red in water lfld mova in the sealons. Circulating and again (four graph. missing. probably; starting. it taka it,df u) the mother of

,',

DBSCBNDANTS OF TH8 ONI!

(he myri.ad things. At times djminishing. at rimes flourishing. it rakes itlldf u [he alignment Vi"g) of the myriad things. (SIri!» 6-1)

The Great One pervades everything and is both the mother and the aligner of the myriad things. Spiriu do not control natural phenomena, nor, as we will see later in the HU!linan~i. do they align the cosmos. Instead, [he One gives birth to the myriad things and aligns them. It is therefore t he one thing mol.[ cannot be controlled by Heaven, Earth, yin. and yang: "This is what H eaven is unable [0 kill, what Earth is unable to regulate. and what yin and yang are unable to complete. The gendeman who understands this is called ... (characters missingr (strips 1-8). H e who unclersunds that the Great One pervOlcles lnd .uigns everything understands the movement of the universe. The authors then explain the alignment of the universe: "The way of Heaven is to value weakness. Ir reduces irs completion so as to add to life. By cutting back on strength, making clear ...~ (strip 9). Part of the text is unfortunately lost, and it is impossible to reconstruct the full argument. But jt is clearly intended to explicate the alignment that can be understood by the person who knows the Great One. The text continues: ~Below is the ground; it is called Earth. Above is qi; it is called H eaven" (strip 10). The interaction of Heaven and Earth takes place through the Great One, also known as the Way; "The Way is also its scyle-name (zi). I beg to know its name (mingr (strip 10). It can be given the scyle-name of~the Wl.y,: but the real name is unknowable. This is presuml.bly a reference to contempoTllry religious pT
oesceNDANTs OF THe ONe

'"

Heaven and Earth. the style-name and name, were established togeeher. Therefore,

if one transgresses the other's boundaries, each flts lli with the other without thinking. [When Heaven was insufficient inJl1 the northwesr, chat: which was below rai$ed icsdf through strength. When the Earth was insufficient in the southeast, that which was above [seven graphs missing; [he lasc four are probably: If there is insufficiency above], rheee is excess below; if there is insufficiency bdow, there is excess above. (Scrips U-14) The sage understands the degree to which forces of the n"tural world spontaneously respond to one :mother. As such, he is "ble to live and "ct effectively in the world. In this cosmology, neither humans nor spirits lffect the environment: the cosmos is simply" set of natural forces thar respond to one another. S"ges lre simply those who understand these processes properly by understanding me Great One-whose scyle-n:une is "the W"y." In this cosmology, natural phenomena are nor controlled by individuated spirits. R.:ather. the authors of this texe "ppropriared divinities and spirits and m"de them into cosmological forces. Like the texts discussed in Chlprer l, this text presents" gnosis different from th"t offered by the ritual spedl.!ists of the day: "ny artempt to manipulate the spirits of the world through divin"rion and sacrifices would be useless within such" cosmology. H owever, the argument here departs significantly from the claims seen in Chapter 2Instead of trying to establish forms of power within the "dept, the "uthors of this text based power on the spontaneous n"rute of the cosmos-which operates independently of me actor. There is an inherent l.!ignmenr in the cosmos, generated and maintained by the GreOlt O ne, that provides the buis for human "ction. Power and knowledge ue thus to be g::J.ined not by "ppropri"ting the powers of spirits but by understanding and subordin"ting oneself to the p"rcems of the cosmos. The cosmos is thus seen as following a normative p"ttern discernible by those who know how to undersr"nd it. The consequence of [his is thar the rensions between humanity and He"ven found in Mencius are here completely erased. H e"ven is here an offspring of a yet e"rlier "ncesfOr-the Great One. And Heaven becomes simply l. parmer with "nother offspring. Earth, with whom it m"res to generate (he rem"inder of the cosmos. Heaven, El.rth, and the rem"inder of the cos-

)6. FoU?wing Qiu Xigui in ruding che mis.sing gnph a.s J4ng

'It; ~ GW..Ji411 ,hw,"w v,w-

jiu, p. ,,6111 7. )7· FoUowing Qiu Xigui in ruding duo I hr~e rmuining mis'ing gr~plu .,

Ibid.

::R -1" ..IE.: Itt

'"

DESCENDANTS OF THE ONS

DBS CBN DANTS OF T H B ONS

mos .art gener:ued md lligned by the One, and any movement by one force spontaneously brings about a movement by its pair. Neither Heaven nor any of the deities can be capricious in this schema. This point allows us [0 reflect further on some claims made concerning

Chinese cosmology. In panicuiar, Joseph Needham's descriptions of eady Chinese cosmology, discussed in the InrroduC[ion, deserve 01 closer look. SchwartZ criticizes Needham's biological meuphors (particularly the de-

scription of the cosmology as "organismic"), arguing. among other things, that Needham's terminology is somewhat contradictory. As Schwartz correedy pointS our, NeedhOlffi's notion of a harmony of wills implies distinctive wills that are then harmonized-exactly the opposite of what Needham is trying [0 imply: "There is much ralk [in NeedhamJ of'cooperation' of partS or 'harmony of wills: while avoiding the faCt that the image of'cooperation' inevirably suggesrs the notion of initially separate entities which come together to 'cooperate:~)8 Although Schwartz's intent is to illustrate Needham's poor choice of words, I would argue that the poor choice is, unintentionally, quite felicitous: what is going on in Chinese correlative thought is precisely an attempt to pull together elements perceived to be distinct-an attempt to claim a form of continuity prevailing against disparate entities. Continuity is not assumed; it is created. In the case at hand, disparate deities are defined as descendants of the Great One. and that ancestor is presented as concinuing to align and participate in me actions of me descendants. Accordingly, the actions of each of these powers are seen as a spontaneous response [0 the actions of the others. All, in other words, are imbued with the One. This firSt instance of correlative thinking appears in a cosmological system in which the One is posited as the ancestor of the cosmos. ~ we shall see, the basing of correlative thinking in a claim of genealogical descent from a single ancestor will continue throughout much of the Warring States. The debate will tum then to issues such as What is the relationship of humans to this One? Do they simply conform to the patterns of the One, or can they achieve power by means of the One as well? And, if they can, under what circumstances is it acceptable to exercise such power? And does one use the traditional arts of sacrifice and divination to do this or some other means!

'"

Becoming an Ancestor to the People: The Laozj In the Guodian cache, the Tlliyi jhrng jhui text is linked with, 2nd may have been attached to, the third of the texts containing chapters of the LAoZi. 39 The LAozi does, indeed, compare in many ways with Tlliyi jheng jhui.<JO To begin with, it positS a comparable cosmogony: The Way gives birth to the One, the One gives birth to the tWO, the two ~ve birth fO the three, the three give Birth to the myriad things. The myriad things carry the yin and embrace the yang. and blend the vapors so all [0 become harmonized. (Chap. 42)

----

Although worked out differently, the cosmogony of the LAoxi, like tha t of the Taiyi Weng jhui, is based on generation from an original ancestor, the Way. Also like the T aiyi jhellg jhui, che LAozi discusses the Way in terms of its name (ming) and style-name (xi): There is a thing chaotically completed, born before Heaven and earth. Still and quiet, sranding alone yet unchanging. going around yet never becoming weary, and capable thereby of being the mother of.ill under Heaven. I do not know its name (ming), Irs styk-name (~i) is "the Way." rEforced to give it a name, it would be called "Great" (da). (Chap. 2$) The ancestor of all that exists can be given a style-name of "the Way," but its rcal name is unknowable. Here again, one cannot domestic.ate or control the divine powcr by learning its name. Unlike the T aiyi jhellg jhui, however, the Laoxi calls on the adept co rerum to this ancestor:

J9· On the n~{~lre of ,he Guodi':lJl u.oli en-ptefs. see Roth, ·Some Me,hodological Iuues in ,he Smdy of ,he Guodi:an u.ozi Pa ,~JJdJ: 4 0. My undemanding of the u.oti h.:u been aided gre.lly by ,he ell.YI in Rdigiow, G..d l'hil~,aphif~J t\'ptfll a/ tilt u.od, edi,.d by Mark C.ikncnunihalyi and PhUip J. Ivanhoe:.

,"

D6SCEND"NTS OF THB ONB

All under Heaven had a beginning. h Ciln be raken a.s the mother of all under Heaven. Once you have obtained rhe mother, you can thereby know the sons.

Once you have known the sons, you can return and hold fur to the mother. Unr~ [he end there will be no harm. (Chap. 52)

The crucial point here is that the sage does not strive simply_to understand. EaHow. and accord with the generative process of the Way. On the COntTOlry, the sage reverses (har gener:iltive process and returns to the source of power: the ancestor. By doing so, the adept gains the nme powers and gener2tU the same h.armony as the Way itself The Way is namdess.

Although the unarved block is ,null, no one is able to subordinate it. If princes rod kings were able [0 hold fur (0 it, The myriad things will submit on their own, wd Heaven rod Earth will harmonb:e with each other and send down SWeet dew. The people will adjust themsdves, yee no one will order them. (Chap. 32.) By holding fast to the Way, the adept is able to make all things submit him, to control the popuhce without resoning to overt commands, and even to bring Heaven and Earth into harmony. He becomes, in a sense, like the ancestor: he is able (0 generate order and cause everything to submit to him. The ruler is thus able to accomplish everything. but it will seem to the people as though everything is simply occurring narurally, without any di· recting will:

DBSCBNDANTS OF THB ONB

"7

Instead, the adept is according with the ancestor in order to gain its powers and create an order of his own choosing. Although the LAo:!:i is often characterized as an expression of a form of naturalism, I would argue that the epithet is even less appropriate for the lAozi than it is for Zhuangzi and Mencius. In the LAozi the sage docs not model himself on nature: he models himself on the Way, which is the ances· tor of the natural and human worlds. H e mus g;tins power over both: the natural world, like the human world, submits to him, not the other way around. Moreover, [he sage does not act naturally at alL To begin with, he reverses the natural generative process to return to the Way. He thereafter fools people into thinking the subsequent phenomena they wirness are naru· ral, when in nct they are simply his wishes. In short. this is not a naturalism at all; it is yet another form of self· divinization-a claim that humans can. through self-cultivation, gain divine powers. But, in contrast to the "Neiye,H the claim here is nor made through a posiced cosmology of qi, essence, and spirit, and the argument is not that humans have the abiliry to become like spirits. It is. rather. a genealogical claim in which the adept is able to appropriate and thus gain the powers of the ultimate ancestor of the cosmos. Whether such a cosmology should be termed correlative depends on one's definition of the term. But I will argue that ideas such as those seen in the LAozi and Taiyi JMIIg shui were crucial for the development of late Warring States correlative cosmologies.

to

When his achievements are completed and tasks finished, The commonefli say that "We are like this Il2runlly (2:i rail): (Chap. 17) Since the people think the order brought about by the ruler is a spontaneow product of me Way, mey readily accept i(. In conrrasr to the sage of the T aiyi JMIIg shui, the sage of [he LAo:!:j is not according with a pre·existing natural order, nor is he simply following the order of the ancestor-the One.

Using the One to Explore Heaven: The Shiliujing The «Chengfa« chapter of the Shiliujing. one of the texts discovered at Ma· wangdui. reveals a concern with the One similar to that seen in [he T ai]i wllg Jhui:1 The chapter consists of a dialogue between Huangdi and his minister Li Hei. Huangdi is concerned about the growth of dissension in his realm: Huangdi asked Li Hei: ~It is only I. the One Man, who h.as united and taken pos, session of all under Heaven. But cunning people are continuing to grow, and clever debaters are using craftiness. They cannot be opposed with laws. I fear that some will employ them and thereby bring chaos to all under Heaven. I wish [0 .ask if all under Heaven hIS complete laws (hat can be used (0 rectify the peOple:>""l

My nanlbrion Iw been aided by Yalc.l, Fiw Leur alwin, pp. 115- )7. 41. ShilIW)i"I.1n M4W<1"tdwl Humw ~mw, I: 71: h~rein.aRtr ciled in lhe tUl.

41.

,68

DESCENDANTS OF THE ONI!

Li Hei responds by first discussing the ancient period:

Li Hei responded: ·Yes. In ;!.ncient times, when Heaven and Earrh had been completed, recrifled were the n.1mes and in humonr were the forms. [graph missing] thereby held fast to the o lle name. They con nected it [0 Heaven above:lOd extended it to the four seas. I have hurd of the complete laws under Heaven. T herefore it is said: Inscu.d of the many. s~ of the One and then stop. Accord with the name and return to the One, md the people will nor bring disorder co the regulations: (I: 7:1) In the implicit cosmogony here, names emerged with Heaven and Earth. Moreover, the one name is portrayed as fully graspable by hUffillns. By according with it, the ruler can return [0 the ultimate ancestor and regulate all

{he descend.lncs. Huangd i then inquires whethe r the One can still be possessed, 2nd Li H ei 2ssures him th2t it has been 2ccessible throughout history: Humgdi u.id: "' wish to ask if all under Heaven can nill possess the One." Li He! responded: "In ancient times, august Heaven made the phoenix descend to say one word and then stop. The five thearch s employed it, using it to dear Heaven and Earth, calculate the four seas, cherish the ptQple below, and rectify the officer! of the first generation. ro r this reason, all the slanderous people retreated, and the worthy men arose. The five evih were expunged, and the clever debaters stopped. They accorded with the name and returned to the One, and the people did nO{ bring disorder to the regulations." (I: T~) By according with the name, the thearchs were 2ble to right H eaven and Earth and order the world. H U2ngdi nen asks 2bou[ the One itself Huangdi askod, "As for the One: is it the One and that's aII~ Does it also grow"" Li Hci said: "The One is the root of the Way. How could it be so and yet not grow~ [twO graphs missing) is lost, it is because no one is holding fast [0 the One. The Jibenrion (ji~) of the One allows an exploration (chA) of Heaven and Earth. The pattern (Ii 11) of the One extends to the fou r seas." (I: 7l) The p:mern of [he One enends t hroughout the world. Consequenrly, by holding fast to the ancestor, the adept is liberated and thus able to exceed norm2l hum2n limit2tions and ro explore H eaven and Earth. Moreover, the pattern o f the O ne extends throughout the world. The statement is almost precisely the same as the o ne discussed in Chapter 2. from the "Neiye":

DBSCBNDANTS OF THB ONB

,6,

The Way filli all under Heaven. It is everywhere that people reside, but people are unable to understand. With the liberation (jie) of the one word, one explores (eha) Heaven above, reaches to Earth below,;!.Od encircles ;!.Od filli the nine regions. Whu does it mean to be libented by it~ It resides in the nabiliry of rhe mind.4) As nOted above, however, the "Neiye" presents this liberation as occurring entirely within the mind of the adept. Here, the One is presented as the ancestor and the unifying link of the cosmos, and the ade pt is called upon to link himself to it. Li H ei continues: How can one understand the endpoint of complying;!.Od the comprehension of far md near~ Only rhe One is not lost. The One thereby impels transformuions. The few can be used to know the many. Now, for gazing throughout the four seas, reaching the farthest points above and below, with the four directions embracing each other: each follows its own way. Now, a hundred words have a basis, a. thouJ;!.Od words have essentials, and a myriad words have totality. As for the numerolUness of the myriad things: all pass through one hole. (I: 7l) The One thus becomes the ground for control: Now, if not a rectified. person, who would be able to regulue this? He must be a rectified person, thereby able to manage rectification so as. to rectify the strange, grasp the One so as to understand the many. expel what is harmful [0 the people, and support what is appro priate for the people. He manages all by holding fast to the One, and he shares the same endpoints as Heaven and Earth. He can thereby know the good fortUne and misfortUne of Heaven ;!.Od Earth. (I: 72.)

By holding fast to the One, one is able to understand and regulate all. Again, as in the "Neiye, ~ one is able [ 0 understand good fortune and misfonune. But, if the ade pt in the "Neiye~ is liberated through inner cultivation, the sage of the Shiliujing frees himselfby holding faSt to that which generated and continues to pervade everything. All three of the texts discussed thus far-the T !liyi s~ng shui, the Laori, and [he HChe ngfa chapter of the Shiliujing-have a similar monogenetic cosmology: everything that exists, we are told, was generated from a single ancestor-usually termed the One. Accordingly, great powers over m e descendants of thar" ancestor-including H eaven and Eanh themselvescan be obtained if one can rerurn to that ancesror. The enct method. for H

DBSCBNDANTS OF THB ONB

returning varies by text, as do the powers that can be obtained. But whu is of interest here is how this cosmology reverses that seen in me sacrif'icW models. The sacrificial models assume a radical disjunction between me human realm and the world of spirits. The goal was thus to try, within me limits of what wu possible, to anthropomorphize me spirit world, beginning with the local and most immediate spirits and working one's way up the panmeon to, one hoped. Heaven itSelf. In mese cosmologicd models. however. me claim is not dut theu existS an inherent disjuncrio..n between me human, natUnI. and spirit real.nu but rather that all t hings-humans. natUU, and the entiu pantheon of gods (including Heaven)-are descendants of a single ancestor, and all things are thus direcdy related by descenL Thus, by undersranding or (in other texts) holding fast to this ancestor. one can gain knowledge or even direct power over all things. These cosmological texts are, in short, an attempt to reject .a sacrificial model of the cosmos by asserting .absolute monogenesis and by claiming a consequent ability to tetUm directly to the ultimate anceStor instead of having to work up (and tr.ansform) the pantheon with sacrifices beginning at me local leveL Becoming a Spirit: The "Xinshu" Ch.aprers of the Guanzi Read in this way, the cosmological texts under consider.ation in this chapter are similar to thme discussed in Chapter ~. And, indeed, the authors of the "Xinshu, shang" and "Xinshu, xi.1," chapters 36 and 37 respectively of the Guanzi, +t modeled their argumentS direcdy on the "Neiye." Not o nly is the overall cosmology quite similar to that seen in the "Neiye," but significant portions of these dupters are bued on passages from the "Neiye.H owever, the .argumentS concerning sd(-divinization go much farther than those found in rhe "Neiye." The authors of the "Xinshu, ria" begin by focusing on the rectification of me form and the resting of the essence within: "If the form is not rectified. me power (de) will not arrive. If the essence is nor within, the mind will not be regulated. RectifY me form .and illumin.are the power, and all the myriad things will .arrive on their own."·tS The passage is almost idential to one

44. For an excdlem diKuuion of t~ ..duionlhip betwun Int "Neiye" and the "Ximhll" dupten. see ROlh. "Re
DBSCBNDANTS OF THB ONE

'7'

from the "Neiye-: KIf the form is not rectified. the power (de) will not arrive. If you are not still within, the mind will nor be regul.ared. Rectify t he form and assist the power: i6 Building on the argumentS of the "Neiye," the .au~ thors of the "Xinshu. ria" posit a cosmology b.ased o n form and essence. Maint:aining these properly allows one to obt:ain power. regulate rhe mind, and thereby bring the myriad things to oneself. N in the "Neiye: the cosmos is moniscic. He who gt2$ps the One is thus .able to explore everyming: lberefore. as for the sage, the one word liberates him. He explores H eaven .above Uld explores Earth below· (1).8a). Alrhough the sage never le~lVes his form, he is .able to explore the cosmos simply by gnsping m e one word. And. ag.ain.as in the "Neiye,· this allows him to rule all the myri.ad things: He who grasp' rhe One and does not lose it is able to become the ruler of the myriad things. He shares the same brightness of the Ilin md moon and shares the same pattern as Heaven md Earth. The s~ge regulates things; thinV do nOt control him. (1).6b) The claim here exceeds .anything seen in the "Neiye." Grasping the One not only gives the sage access to the cosmos, it in fact allows him to g.ain the S.1.me p.attern as He.aven .and E.arth .and achieve the S2JT\e brighme~ as the sun and moon. He has the same powers of control as He.aven itself. This emphasis on the divine powers of hum.ans is particularly de.ar in the way the authors playoff the discussion in the "Neiye" concerning shen. The text defines spirit as that which is so refined .as to be immeasur.able by o rdinary human experience .and yet understands everything: • As for the spirit, no one knows its ultimate point. It bri11i.anrly knows all under He.aven and penetr.ates the four ulrimate poincs" (1}.s b-6a). The text then qUOtes the "Neiye" pass.age on divination. Intriguingly, however, it omits me admonition to concentrate "25 if a spirit" (ru see p. liS):

men;

Can YOll concentrate' em you unify~ Can you not engage in c ~kmaking or milfo~ divinaIion md ya lInderstand auspiciowinesJ ahd inauspiciousness~ Can you StOp' Can you reach m end? Can you nOt :uk others and obtain it in yourself? Therefore it is said: "If you think about it and think abollt it but do nOt obtain it. the ghOstS and spirits will teach ir. This is nOt due ro the power of ghOUl md spirits; it is dlle 10 the 1Iitimate point of the essential qi: (IJ.6a-h)

DBSCENDANTS OF THE ONI!

DBSCENDANTS OF THB ONE

The p:.l.Suge concludes by defining the sage: in precisely the same terms used to describe me spirit: NHe brilliantly knows all under Haven and penetrates

piled at a time when the Qin unification of the stares became a real possibility, the text appears to be part of a court debate over what the ideology of the state of Qin should be. The received tradition holds that Lli Buwei commissioned a number of scholars ro write chapters for a work that would encompass aU knowledge of the rime. Why such a tradition would develop is d ear: the overall claim made by the rext is one of indusivity. Although the specific arguments vary from chapter to chapter. each chapter attempts to pull togerher distinct positions into larger. totalizing systems. Moreover, and more important for the concerns of this chapter, the attempt is usually made within cosmological frameworks. The text t hus reveals an array of cosmological positions taking shape in the mid-rhird century BC since the place of humans varies from chapter (0 chapter, t he text serves as an excellent series of examples of some of the disparate late Warring States attempts to envision rulership within a cosmological framework. The text also provides a snapshot of a debate at the Q in court on the eve of the imperial unification. In the short run, as we shall see, the positions;lSsociared with the Liishi chunqiu failed to win OUt ae Court: soon after the work was completed. Lli Buwei fell from power, and the Qin court thereafter provided little support for such ideas-nor did it do so after the formarion o f the Qin empire. We thus g.ain a glimpse as well ofrhe precarious position of correlative cosmology.at (he courtS of the day. The t~Xt continues the critique of ritual specialists, as well as the critique H of rulers of the day for employing them. For example, the "Jie shu chapter sees attempts to manipulate the world of spirits as causing the problems they are supposed ro prevent: HIn the current generation, the rulers use crackmaking and milfoil divination, praying. and sacrificing. Therefore. sickness and H4S disease come all the more. The same chapter has similar critiques of the H "spirit specialisrs and physicians -figures whom the "the ancients held in Hi9 contempt. Such criticisms show the degree ro which. even as late as 140 BC, cosmologists still perceived themselves [0 be.a minority voice at the court and thought i( necessary to argue th.lt the rulers of their day should nor reSO rt to such riru.al :uts as divination and sacrifice. The point is worth emphasizing. since manr rwenrieth-cenrury analyses take (he cosmological

'7'

H

the four ultimate points (13.7b). The claims are essencially those of the "Neiye,H hut (he authors take (he additional step of implying that one can in fact become a spirit and gain full knowledge: of all under Haven. Another chapter of [he Guan zi, the HXinshu, shang. makes the point Cl(plicit. The (ext at one point makes a claim dearly reminiscent of the HNeiye "If one empties one's desires, me spirit will emer and dwell. If·in clearing one does not dunse fully. the spirit willleave,H It then prollides a commentary to this Sfatemenc: H

H

:

That which regulates man is essence. If you discard desi res, [hen you will be illembracing. If you are alI.embrrong, then you will be lrilL If you are still. you will be of essence, If you are of essence. you will establish yoursdf alone. If you are alone. you will be iIIuminiited. If you are illuminated. you will be a spirit. The spirit is the most valued. Thus. if a hallway is not opened and deared. then a valued person would not reside in it. Therefore it is said: ·If you do not cleanse. the spirit will not remain.""?

Utilizing the same oosmology and same terminology as the "Neiye," the au· thors of the "Xinshu, shang make the full claim that humans can in fact become spirits. Like the "Chengf.( chapter of the Shiliujing, the authors of these twO chapters posit a monistic cosmology in which the adept should anempc to grasp the One. But, whereas the ·Chengfa" is built on an argument for the necessity of understanding and controlling the many by means of the One, the authors of these chapters are arguing that the sage can in fact be~ome a spirit-ruling over the myriad things, possessing the same panern as Heaven and Earth, and penetr.ating ro the four points of the cosmos. Despite their differences, however, both follow a similar move: both present a monogenetic cosmos, and both d.aim th.at the ruler can g.ain great powers by returning directly to the One. M

Becoming Like Heave n: The LU5hi chunqiu Many of these cosmological arguments were further elaborated in the Liilhi rhunqiu, a text put together by Lil Buwei at the court ofQin around a39 BC. The text is • .among orher things. an argument for universal rulership. Com-

4B. Liiu,i chw~qiu. "Jielhu: l.$"-. 47. G"""ti. "Xinlhu, Ihang." 1).lb, )a- b.

49. Ibid.

'73

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DBSCflNDANTS OF THB ONE

DESCENDANTS OF THE ONE

claims in texts like the UiJhi ,hunqill as evidence of fundamenu.1 structures of Chinese thought and overlook the origins of these texts as polemics against the dominant practices at the courts of the .uy. And they were arguments that would conrinue to be, for much of the next [WO ccnrories, quite unsuc'

itself, and me sages created music by determining those natural harmonies. Music thus exemplifies this natur.al harmony: ~ All music is th e harmonizing

'74

cessful. "VaYUtO The -Oayue- chapter, an essay on music, opens with a cosmogony design ed co pl:ace both the origins of music and the sages' utilization of music within a

bro2d generative framework-a framework reminiscent of the Talyi sheng Jhui: The origiru of tones and music are distam. They were generated of measures and rooted in the Great One (T airi). The Gra.t One produced the two forms. the twO fOnN produced [he yin and the yang.. the yin and the yang changed and transfonned, one above and one bdow, joining and completing. confused and chaoric, separating and then again joining. joining and then again separating. This is called the constancy of Heaven. Heaven and Eatth were the wheel of a chariot, ending and then again beginning. reaching the extreme and then again retuming.~

As in the T aip mellg Jhui, the cosmogony here centers around the Great One. But unlike that earlier text, the role of the Great One was ro give bitth to twO forms, which then gave binh to the yin and yang. The interaction of these two created the seasons, and out of this th e myriad things were born: The four seasons repeatedly arose, now hot, now cold; now shott, now long: now 5011:, now hard. The myriad thinp' were what emerged, initiated (tao) by the Great One, transfomled by rhe yin and yang. germinating. sprouting. devdoping. growing. growing cold, and freezing-all so as fa be formed. (s.3b) The proper and harmonious funcrioning of the cosmos allows for the continued growth of things. The sounds produced from the ensuing harmony became the basis for t he sages' formation of music: "The form and substance have a place; everything has a sound . Sound is produced from harmony, harmony is produced from being fitting. When it was harmonious and fitting. the forme r kings determined (dillg) the music. (Music) was generated from

mis- (s.3b). Harmonious sound is mus a product of the growth of the cosmos

of Heaven and Earth and the blending of yin and yang~ (S. 4a). Hence, the sages use music to maintain Heaven and Earth in proper harmony. The Great One is the source of this harmony. As the authors argue in a pi\.SS:.lge almost identical to statements in both the Taiyi lhtllg shui and the LAozi: "The Way is the utmOSt essence. It cannot be formed; it cannot be named. If you are forced to do so, call it the Great One. Therefore, the One regulates and commands. and the two follow and obe( (S. 4a- b). Consequently, humans who can use th e One are able to bring harmony ro nature: He who can U5e rhe One to bring order fa his body will escape from disuter, live a long life to me end, and keep intact his Heaven (Tian). He who is able to use the One fa govern his state will CUt out depravity and licenriousne:u, attract: the wonhy, and complete the great transformarion. He who is able to use the One to regulate all under Heaven will cause cold and heat to be moderated and rhe wind and rain to be rimdy, and will become a sage. (s.4b) By utilizing the One, an adept can bring the natural world to its proper fruition: the individual will live out his allotted lifespan, the ruler of a state will bring order ro his realm, and me supreme ruler of :ill under Heaven will properly modulate the forces o f natu re. Humans thus playa crucial role in moderating not only human nature but [he entire natural world. Music occupies a middle position here-it is based on the generative processes of nature. and yet it is one means humans use to regulate nature. Humanity is thw, even in the formation of mwic, the fulfiller of natural processes. The way to control the wind and rain, therefore. is n ot by trying to manipulate the spirits who control such forces but by connecting oneself to the Great One and theteby helping t o maintain the harmony of the cosmic forces. Iv. in the ~Chengfa, ~ the argument here is that the adept should conform to an ex:re rnal One.

"&nJben{ In contrast to the ~D;lyuew chapter and [he ·Chengfa.~ the authors of several other chapters in the Lusbi ,bunljiu built th eir cosmological arguments on claims concerning Jhtll. The -Bensheng" chapter, one of the most interesting of these essay., makes coamologica.l claims for the potentially divine powers

",

DBSCBNDANTS OF THB ONS

DeSCeNDANTS OP THE ONE

s, of humans through a complex argument concernirig ancestors and humans. The opening statement plays on the dde of the ruler, the Hson of Heaven~ (tiam:i): "That which first gives birch (~hmg) is Heaven; the one that nour-

Therefore, as regards a sage's rdation to sounds, colors, flavors, and tastes: if they are beneficial to his nature, he takes them. If mey are harmful to his n:u:ure. he rejects them. This is the way of completing his nature. (I ...b).

ishes and completes is man. The one who is able [0 nourish what Heaven HS2 generates without perverting it is called the Son of Heaven. H eaven is a

And completing his nOlture is tantamount to completing his He:.l.ven:

generative power, and humans nurture what Heaven has generated. However, such activities risk a perversion of the inheritance, a perversion thac can

be avoided only by the Son of H eaven-that is, he who is a proper son, properly foUawing what me p
The sole goal of the State should be to complete Heaven. And the s:.l.me point holds at the level of human nature. Ag.ain, the emphasis is on the necessity of nurturing human nature and on [he dangers of perverting it:

It is the nature of man to be long-lived. But things (WII) disorder it; therefore, it does not obtain long life. Things are used to nurrure the nature; they :m: not what uses the nature to be nurrured. (1.4a) The concern, therefore, is not opposite:

to

use oneself to help th ings but the enct

Of those who are deluded in the present a~, many usc the nature to nurture things. They do nOt understand (the distinctions ofllightness and heaviness. He who does not know lightness and heaviness rakes heavy as light and light as heavy. As such, every action fails. ([, 4a-b) The abili£)' to nurture correctly thus resides in a correct underscOlnding of distinctions. Accordingly, the sage consumes only those things that are beneficial:

SI. My undemanding of this dupeer has bt:.:l\ helped by ,he in.!ighdul commenu in Gra· ham. "The Backgroul\d of ,he Mencian Theory or Human Nature: pp. I ) - IS. I. however. question Graham', attempt to read the chapter as "Yangi"'S1. LiiJhi rhwn~iw. "Bc:nlheng."l.lb- 4a: hereinafter cilro in Ihe lUI.

Therefore, the sage regub.res me myriad things so as to complete his Heaven. If his Heaven il complete. then his spirit will be harmoni:o:ed, his eyes wiU be dear-,eeing. hil ears keen of he:uing. his nose good at smelling. his mouth quick. the }60 joints all connected .and ,harp. (1.51)

By thus regulating the myriad things, me sage is :.I.ble to perfect his he.avenly endowment, His powers Olnd f.tculties then connect properly with the rest of the cosmos: as hil spirit becomes hOlrmonized with the cosmos, his senses are Olble to perceive without error. ru :.I. consequence, the sage himself be· comes like He.aven md fu.rth: His essence will penetrate Heaven .and Emh, and his spirit will cover the universe. As regards things: there:ue none he does nor receive.and none he does not internalitt. He is like Heaven and Eanh. (I.sa). The cycle is complete. Heaven gives birth to mm, :.I.nd man thus has :.I. part of Heaven within him. The goal of man is ro utilize the things of the world to complete that which HeOlven has given. The true sage-the person who is able to complete this process-ultim:.l.tely intemali:o:es all things within himself, and h il essence and spirit penetr:.l.te the universe. The Son becomes compuable to that which gave birth to him: he becomes like He.aven :.I.nd Euth th emselves. The sage's achievement of a spirit that encompasses the cosmos is thus rhe teleological completion of what He:.l.ven iniri.ally generated. In such a cosmology, man does not exist in Ol potential agon with Heaven, n or does man follow Heaven; instead man-if he fully achieves his potenrialcom pletes Heaven's generative process and ,thereby regulates the myriad things of the universe. Things are therefore to be used to aid in m:.l.n's completion of this geneutive process. In short, Heaven esta.blished the cosmos for mOln: if the Son of H e.aven accepts what benefits hil own nature md re o jects all that does not, he will rule over the world properly. The ugument is in some W:.l.ys :.I. radicali7;ation of the claims of Mencius. Mencius believed rh.:u sages, by culriv:.l.ring that which Heaven gave them, could encompass the myriOld things and humonize Heaven :.I.nd Earth. But he allo felt thn Heaven, fo r renons that were mysterious, at times blocked

",

DI!SC8NOANTS OF THS ONI!

D ESCENDANTS Of THE ONE

the uge's proper ordering of the world. In this chapter of the LUJhi chunqiu, however. the sage's ordering of the cosmos is defined :.l.S normative movement of the generative process begun by H eaven. The potential agon

As in the - Bensheng" chapter, by following this program, the ruler profeCts the Heaven within him:

me

found from the Western Zhou through Mcneius, which figures like Zhuangzi rejecrcd by defining [he spirit :.l.S sponraneously following He2ven, is here denied entirely: in achieving the ability to encompass the universe and

regulate the myriad things, the sage brings to completion what Heaven has

gencTlccd. A closer look, however. reveals chat the argument of the "Benshenf p.r.allds the ritual behayior toward the ancestors discussed in Chapter I : it is t he living who must bO[h fulfill me processes begun by the ancestors and place those ancestors in the proper location. O nly here the prlXess moves in t he opposite direction: instead o f trying to order his ancestors and ultima tely influence H eaven, the ruler becomes like Heaven and personally brings order to the entire cosmos. The method advocated is therefore self-cultivation, not sacrifice .and djvin.ation. As in the "Neiye" and ~Xinshu· ch.apters, powers usu.ally conceived to be obt.ainable only by ritual specialists in their dealings with spirits are here presented 2S obt.ainable by certain humans through selfcultivation. The conflict between humans and spirits is denied by representing the s.age 2S capable of divinizing himsdf .and thereby internalizing all of the cosmos within himself.

The ~Lunren· chapte r plays with these notions in a sligh tly different way. The ch.apter opens by explaining th.at the most important thing for.a ruler to do is ro revert ro his true n.ature: What is meant by tu rning back to oneself:' Making one's ears and eyes appropriate, modulating one's lusts and desires, forsaking deverness and plotting. expelling crafi'iness and precedent, letting one', intentions roam (you) in the inexhaustible realm. and exercising one's mind on the path of spontaneity.S} Neither precedent-following the p2St-nor craftiness-shifting with the times-is of use. The goals .are to return co one's true self, w.ander through out the cosmos, and embT2ce spont.aneity. On the face of it, this sounds very much like Zhuangzi.

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As such, there will be nothing that will harm his Heaven. If there is nothing that will harm his Heaven, then he will know his essence. Ifhe knows his essence, then he will know his spirit. Knowing his spirit is known u obtaining the One. Now, the myriad fornu are completed after obtaining the One. Therefore, he who knows the O ne can respond to the a1reradons and transfor.mations of thin~. (1.7bl H ere too, the possibility of conflict with Heave n is denied; on t he contrary, one's highest goal as a human is to protect that piece of H eaven within oneself. But t he "Lunren" .adds to th is argument.a cosmology ba.sed on essence, spirit, and t he One. These are arrayed in a hierarthy: not harming his Heaven allows t he adept to know his essence, which in tum allows him to know first his spirit and then the One. Since all things, it is implied, 2fe subo rdinate to the One, his knowledge of the One allows the adept to respond things flawlessly. As in the "Bensheng" chapter, this ultim.ately allows one to be like H eaven and Earch: to

Therefore, if his knowledge consists in knowing the One, then he will be like Heaven and Earth. As such, then what affair cannot be overcome:' Whu thing (wul will he not respond to? (3.8a) The ruler thus, in .a sense, t ranscends being a thing (wu). He inste.ad knows the One and is like He.aven and E.arch: he witnesses the alterations and tr.ansformation of things and responds properly. In some w.ays, this argument is reminiscen t of that in the "Neiye": by culrivaring himself, the adept is able to obt.ain the One and rule effectively. But here the implication is not that one, a.s in the -Neiye; conrrols things; the sense is, rather, that o ne is able [0 respond effecrively to things. This is, in .a way, a political re.ading of t he cosmology of texes like the Zhuang:ri. But instead of simply .accepting the o rder of H eaven and thereby spontaneously according with [he proper way, the rule r here becomes like Heaven md Earch and thus m.aintains t he s.ame spontaneous d irection over things [h,lI[ He.aven .and Earth the mselves exercise. The Zhuangzi repeatedly advises us [0 Stop trying to overcome He.aven; t he concern here is precisely to allow the adept to ovetcome things. The path to political power, therefore, lies not in becoming like a 'piTit bur in att.aining t he same spontaneous guidance of the cosmos exerciaed by Ht2ven.

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DESCENDANTS OF THB ONB

DBSCBNDANTS OF THE ONE

·Wugon{ Ytt another variant of the cosmological argument is ·Wugong~

(0

be found in the

chapter. A3 in the "Lunren," the argument of the

·Wugong~

chaptcr is based on .a linkage of spirit :.l.nd the Great One. The sage-king. the :.l.uthors argue, nourishes his spirit. cultivates his power (dt) and transforms.... Bright, like the il·

lumination of the sun, he alters and transforms the myriad things, and nothing is not put in morion. His spirit is harmonized with the Grear One.

54

By nourishing his spirit, the sage-king harmonizes his spirit with the G reat

,8,

of arts such as divination or sacrifice. The implication is that the spirits are without form yet can nonetheless order things-powers [hat a human can attain as well. H owever. nothing in the text implies [hat ghosrs and spirits face south and thereby make all under H eaven follow their wishes. Hwnans can pene· trate to the ghosrs and spirits, but humans are also granted a particular and crucial role in ordering the cosmos. As with Confucius, that role is based on ritual positioning. but here it is discussed in terms of a cosmological potency. As a consequence, the sage·king is able to bring all within his realm into the form that he desires:

One and gains power over things:

In general, the ruler resides in evenness and srillncss and employs virrue and Hans· fornution so as to follow his needs. In this way, he gives form to nature (xi"g).

His essence penetrates to the ghosts and spirits. Deep. minutt, dark, mysterious; no one sus his form. If today he faced south, the hundred hettrodoxies would co rrect

(17. lob )

themsdves and all under Heaven would return to their dispositions. The people would fully take plusure in their intentions and peacefully culrivate theif natures, and none would act without completing. (17.gb)

The sage-king does precisely what [he Great One does: he gives form to things by guiding their nature-their innate potenriality. The sage's realm is rhus a microcosm of the larger cosmos. By nourishing his spirit, the ruler can anain the power to tuns form things and give them form. This is yet another variant of the attempc co claim continuity in che cosmos and co posicion the human ruler, by linking with che ultimate ancestor, as the ordering force of the cosmos.

These powers would ultimately allow him to become like [he ghosrs and spirirs, and he would recfio/ the world. The claim here is in some ways cpmparable to a Statement from the

Llmyl.l (IsIs): The master said: "NOt doing anything and yet purring things in order, this was Shun. What did he do? He made hinuelf reverent, was rectified, and faced south; that is ill: Shun was able to PUt all in order by assuming the proper ritual position. H The passage from the HWugong chapter makes a similar point but at a cosmological level: by making his spirit harmonize with the Great One, the sage-king penerrates to [he ghosrs and spirirs and brings order to the wOtld. Several interrelated claims are being made here. The most important is chat humans can, through self-cultivation, gain the same powers as ghosrs and spirits. Precisely what powers ghosts and spirits have is not clear: they certainly do not seem to be the ghosts and spirits of contemporary religious practice-beings who act willfully and (from the point of view of humans) sometimes arbitrarily, and who therefore need to be manipulated by means

Each of these chaprers from the Lushi chl.lnqil.l involves anempts to develop a cosmological argument based on a claim of genealogical descent. If everyching is descended from a common ancestor, then how does man gain power vis-a-vis this ancestor! As I have noted, the answers to this question are complex cosmological reworkings of the issues discussed in Chapter I concerning ancestral sacrifices. Correlative cosmology in China may be an attempt to supersede sacrificial models, but the authors of cosmological syscems often appeal to the model of ancestral sacrifice in making their argumenrs. As Granet (according to my reading of him) has argued, cosmology in early China often recapitulates sacrificial claims.

The Pattern of Heaven and Earth: The Xunzi All the rexts discussed thus far in this chapter advocate a cosmology based on a common descent of everything (including man) from a single ancescor, ~nd all reject practices such as divination and sacrifice. r tum now to Xunzi,

,',

DSSCENDANTS OF THE ONS

DESCENDANTS OF THE ONI!

one of the pre-eminent thinkers of the third cenrury

DC.

U

Many scholars

would argue that although Xunzi rejects divination and sacrifice, he does not accept the cosmological argumenrs developing around him. Indeed, Heiner Roe[% porcnlYs Xunzi as a full racionalis~ 2nd .argues thOlt :although Xunzi at times appears to make cosmological arguments. he does not intend them as such. In Xunzi. Hthe cosmological diction is rhetoric. ooS7 I will dispute each of these pointS! Xunzi was indeed exm:mely interested in cosmological notions, and unlike so many of his contemporaries, he jUpporttd sacrifice and divination. Although he agreed that sacrifice and divill2-

cion could not coerce spirits, he argued that they were nonetheless tradi· tional practices and should be accepted as such. Thus, in connast to those calling for a rejection of sacrifice and d ivination on the grounds that the SlIge can achieve the same ends through shen-like inruition, Xunzi argues that such practices :a.re culture (Wtn 3t). As he states in the li:a.nlun~ ch:a.pter:S8

If we S:l.crifice and it e:lins, what does this mean! I s:a.y: it does not mean :a.nything. It is the S:l.me as not S:l.crificing md h:a.ving it rain. When the sun is eaten by the moon (Le., when there is an eclipse), we uve it; when Heaven has.:l. drought. we ucrifice; we engage in ctackmaking and milfoil divin.:l.tion and only then decide .:I. great event. But we do not thereby obt.ain wh.:l.t we seek; we.are pl:lCing culture (10'(11) upon ir. Therefore, .:I. genclemm tues this as culture. but the hundred f:a.milies tue it as divine (skn). To take it as culture is .:I.uspicious; to take it as divine (shen) is inauspicious.S'J But wh.:l.t precisely does Xunzi me.:l.n in distinguishing wen and shen! T ellingly, Xunzi defines wen in rebtion to sacrifici:a.l action. His full argument is worth following in depth. At the xillng sacrifice, we ue told, water, raw fish, and unflavored soup are offered: NAt the great xiang sacrifice, one offers a goblet of water, pbces

55. My ovenl.I understanding of Xunzi hu been hdped gr~t!y by the analyse.! in Goldin. Ril..../' oflbe W~y:.md the essays in Kline.md Ivanhoe, Virlu., Nal,,.., a..J Moral Ag<"'1 illth. XUllri. Of J=licular hdp for d", specific issues of in.eresr in this section hu been Campany,

-Xunzi and Durkhcim as Thcor1m ofRiru.al Practice: 56. See, e.g., Roetl, Conjuriall Ethics of Ib • .Axi..I Ag<, PP.11)-~. 51. Ibid., p. ~10. 58. My unda~r.anding of rhe 'T.. n1uo" chapter hu been aided rremendowly by Ivanhoe, -A Happy Symmnry"; M.achle, N~lure • ..J He","", ill 1M XUIIli; and Eno, Tht Colljulillll ertaliolloj H'4~'~' pp. 1~4-61. 59. Xwn~; (htTeinalter cited in the text), '''tllun," 1I.I)lI.

'"

raw fish on the offering table, and serves firS[ the unflavored soup. This is co w honor the foundations (ben ;$:) of food and drink ("Lilun,w IJ.3b). But one men goes on to offer prepared foods: At the xiang S:lCMCe, one offers the goblet of wuer but [hen uriliXe:I wine and SWeet wine; one fim h:u glutinous and pmided millet but then eats rice:l.l1d spiked millet; at the sacrifices, one tues the unflavored soup but then gets filled with various ddicacies. One is thus honoring the foundations yet embracing how they.:l.u used (yong ffl). ("Lilun: lJ.lb) The sacrifices allow us to honor both the raw and the cooked, Xunzi then associates these cwo poles with wen and Ii ~, respectively: NHonoring the foundations is what we call cultural forms (wen). Embracing how they are used is what we call pattern (Ii)" rLilun,~ 13.Jb). Offering a goblet of water, placing raw fish on the offering cable, and serving unfl:a.vored soup is an example of culrural form-of :a.crions mar direct the p:a.rticipants' attention to the foundations observable in nature. And the second p:a.rt of the sacrifices allows us to embrace human preparation of food and drink for consumption. "When these cwo :a.re combined with completed cultural forms, they thereby return to the Great One. All of this is what we call the Great Flourishing- (Lilun,· lJ.3b). The · completed cultural forms Hthus rerum us co rhe Gre:I.C One-me original foundation-just as lesser cultural forms return us to such basics as raw food. Xunzi has thus posiced an extremely complex sec of interlocking defmitions. We have foundations, cultural forms that help us honor those found:a.(ions, p:;.tterns that allow us to embrace how humans put those foundations to use. and completed cultural forms th:a.[, combining cultural forms and patterns, return us ro the Gre:l.[ One-the primary foundation. Sacrifices for Xunzi thus involve a focus on (he nature of human action in relation to the world. Indeed, they encapsulate the entire process of hum:a.ns' taking elemencs of n:a.ture, preparing them, and then cons uming them. Ac one level, mis may seem like a very Hrationar understanding of sacrifice. Indeed, it closely corresponds with some of Uvi-Srr:a.uss·s :a.nalyses of ritual. But Xunzi's final claim thu humms are thus honoring (he Great One reveals a gre:l.rtr cosmological interest than Roetz is willing to admit. To mue sense of this, let us take a closer look at Xunzi's conception of-founda_ t ions: cultural forms, and p:a.tterns. For Xunzi, cultural forms 2nd patterns :are humm artifice, whereas the foundations:are part of nature,

,8,

DESCBNDANTS OF TH E ONE

Therefore r say that the nature (:o:'''g) is the foundatio n. the beginning, the material, and the substance; artifice il the cultural fo rm (wen). pattern (Ii), abundance. and

flourishing. If there were no nature. there would be nothing for :mif'ice to add to. If there were no artifice. the naNn: would be unable [0 beautify irsd( Only when the nature and artifice combine are the names of the sages unified and the accomplish -

ments of all under Heaven completed. (Lilun,W1).1001)

And artifice mUJI be combined with narure in order for the myriad [hin~ to be brought to order: Therefore, I say that when Ha ven and the Eanh combine, the myriad things are born; when yi n and yangjoin. changes lIld rraruformarions arise; when the nature and artifice combine. all under Heaven is pur in order. Heaven can give birth to things but cannot dUdnguish things; the Earth can bea r man but cannot put mm in order. Within the universe. the myriad things generate those who belong to the human race, they await the sage and only then arc they differentiated. ("Lilun: 13.roa)

It is the combining of cultural forms and patterns with the foundations that brings order to the world. As r have argued elsewhere. there is an implicit teleology in Xunzi: humans fulfill th eir proper duty through artifice :md 60 rhereby bring order to that which Heaven generated. Elsewhere. Xunzi speaks of patterns (Ii) as wmething ehe sages properly brough t to t he world of nature: Therefore, Heaven and Earth gave birth to the gentleman. The gencleman gives patterru to Heaven and Euth. The gentleman forms a triad with Heaven and Earth, is the summation of the myriad things. and is the father and mother of the people. Without the gentleman. H eaven and Earth have no pattern. rirual and righteousnCD have no unity, above there is no ruler or leader. below there is no father or son. This is called me utmost chaos. Ruler and mi nister. father and son, older and younger brother. hUJbmd and wife. begin and then end. end and then begin. They share with Heaven and Earth the same pattern and lut for ten thousand genera· nons. This is called the G reat Foundation (btn). r Wangzhi: s.7a-b) T he gentle man forms a triad with H eaven and Earth. and he in rum becomes the f.uher and mother of the people. And this entire hien.rchy is de· fined as the Great Foundation. The order of sages is thus the teleo logical completion of the generation of H eave n. As in the "Benshenf chapter of the LUJhi ,hunqiu, the sage is the son of Heaven in a lite ral sense o f carrying OUt ehe inheritance of Heayen,

DESCBNDAN TS OF THB ONB

,8,

Bur the sage d oes not. through cuirivation, become like H eaven. On the contrary, HeaYen and man haye distinct duties in the proper ordering o f the cosmos. They ue generically related, but in this cos mology [he son does not become like the ancestor.

So what about mrn? If in this cosmology the sage completes [he wo rk of Heaven, t hen d oes [he SOIge become a spirit? The arrayed sran follow in ci rcles, the Jun and moon , hine in alternation, the four seasons take charge in liuccession, yin and yang greatly transform, the wind and thc rain disseminate broadly. As for the myriad thingJ, each obt:ain.s what harmonizes with it in order to be born, and each obcains iu nurtura nce in order to become , omplere. We cannOt see thc activity. but we can sec the accomplis hmenu. TIm is what we call "divinc· (she .. ). All unde rstand that by whi,h it hu been complered but no one unders tands its formlessness. This i, what wc call -Heavcn.· O nly the sage acts without liecking to understand Heavcn. ("Tianiun," lI.gb-loa) The cosmos operates according to specified pancrns in order to allow things (wu) to live and receive nourishment. The filct that the cosmos so operates is Xunzi uses the term not t o describe spiries with comrol over natural phenomena: t he word does nor im ply particular spirits a.s the causal agents o f each eve nt. H e is, rather, using it to describe the d ivine qualities of the panemed cosmos, the fact that it so opc n.tes to allow things to flourish. Jh!rI.

And "H eaven" refe rs to the origin of this cosmos. But, we are told, the sage seeks not [ 0 understand any of this. Xunzi then rums co man. Like the rest of t he cosmos, man is bo rn from Heaven: "When (he work of H eaven has been establis hed and th e accomplishments of H eaven have been completed. the form is prepared and the spirit (00) is born- (iianlun,- n.lOa). ru in texrs like the "Neiye" and "Xinshu: humans have spirit within themselves. Man's inheritance is [hen described a.s coming from Heaven: Likes. dislikes, happiness, anger, sorrow, and joy are nored within him: these are called the Heavenly dis position. The ears, eyes, nose, mouth, and body-each hu thac with which it conneas, but they Cannot substitute for one another: these arc , ailed the Heavenly faculties . The mind resides within the central emptinCSIII so u to rule the five faculties: this is called the Heavenly ruler. It makes into produce what is nOf of its species in order to nurture its species: this is called the Heavenly nunurance. ThOle who accord with their species are called fonunate, and those who oppote their .pecies are called unfortunare; rhis is called the H eavenly govcrnance. ("Tianlun: 11.loa)

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And the sage is the figure who most successfully utilizes his inheritance &om

vine (shtn), the sage who properly uses the endowment given to him by

Heaven:

He2ven to ruJe over the myriOld things is divine (5hen), and the resulting order is gre2cly divine (da l'hm).

The sage dears his Heavenly ruler, recrifies his Heavenly f2culries, prepares his Heavenly nu\'tllrance. accords with his Heavenly governance, nourishes his H eav. enly disposition. and thereby brings completion to the Heavenly accomplishments. Ifhe does so, chen he knows wh.u he is [0 do and not to do. H eaven and Earth then perform chei r functions. and the myriad things serve him. His movements are fully ordered, his nurtuunee fully appropriate. md his life is without'" injury. This is cilled knowing Heaven. (-rianlun.~ IJ.lob)

me

If man utili:zes properly what Heaven has given him, chen myriad things serve him. Man's duty in the cosmos, th erefo re. is ro bring order ro chings. And. for Xunzi, thi5 represents knowing Heaven. In other words, to attempt to study the workings of the cosmos directly (as many correlative texts of the time were advocating) is mistaken; rather, the goal should be to cultivate oneself, utilize the Heavenly inheritance properly, and thereby take 2 dominant role in ordering things. The o rder that results is a further elUmple of lhtll. For ex.ample, in one pasSllge, after discussing h ow all natural objects 2nd CTC2tures are utilized by man for man's benefit, Xunzi condudes: ThlU, as for what Heaven nourishes and Eanh carries, all that is beautiful is urili2:ed, and all that is useful is brought fonh. Above, it is used to adorn the wonhy and good, and below it is used to nourish the hundred families and give them pleasure. This is called the "Great Divinity" (d~ lhen). CWangzhi: s.6b) The appropriation by hum2nity for its own usc all th2t has been nourished and carried by He2ven and Eareh is ehe proper, divine order of the cosmos. And the sage who is able to maintain order in the cosmos is himself divine (lhtn): What is called [he One? I say: holding fast to the divine (Ihen) and being resolute. What is called divine (Jhtn)~ I say: the utmost goodness and full ordering is called divine. If none of the myriad things (wu) are able [0 ovenurn him, then he is called rellolute. He who is divine and resolute is called a sage. CRu xiao: 4.7:1)

By definition, the sage is resolute and divine. Resoluteness is ehe abili£)' nO[ to be overturned by things: the sage should rule things, nor vice vers2. Divinity (lhtll) is specified as "utmost goodness and full ordering (Wi)." This is consistent with Xunzi's other uses of the term Jhen: Jhell is what brings things to their proper order. Thus, the functioning of the cosmoa itlelf is di -

The passage continues: -rhe sage is the manager of the Way. The Way of all under Heaven is managed by him; the W2y of the hundred kings is unified by him. Therefore, the Pomy, DocUm t IlU, RituaIJ,:and MUlic return us to him" ("Ru xiOlo: +.72). The traditions of the sages, recorded in wh2t we now call the Classics. allow later generations to know the teachinV of the sages. Bur since Heaven has endowed everyone with the ability to become 2 sage, anyone who studies these 2ncienr records c:an 2chieve the same powers: If you make a man in [he street submit to techniquell and engage in srudy, concentrating his mind and unifying his will, thinking. inquiring. examining. adding each day for a long time, accumulating goodness without ceasing. [hen he will penetrate [0 [he divine clarity (5henmillg) and form a triad with Heaven and Eanh. ("Xing'e,' 11.6b) But these powers grant the srodent neither control over phenomen2 nor a flawless undersranding of the cosmos but, rather, 2n ability to bring proper order to himself and the world. Xunzi thus util..izcs much of the increasingly common cosmological vocabulary of the time but 21ters it so as to emphasize (he crucial importance of following the e2rlier sages. of continuing the ritual and textual traditions of the past. We are now in 2 position to understand Xunzi's re2ding of sacrifice and divinuion. In the p2SSage quoted Olt the beginning of this seerion, Xunzi defends these practices as Wtll, but not as shen. The ~Neiye~:and ~Xjnshu' claim divination to be unnecesury beCOlUSC such powers of prognostication arc obtain2ble through human cultivation; Xunzi encour2ges these practices. But he opposes any attempt to undersund the spirits or Heaven, 2nd he opposes any ;mempr 2t prognostication: he rejects the claim that one can truJy understand a future event (either through divin2tion or intuition). Nonethdess, the practice still has va.iue, for ir is 2 tradition handed down by the sages. But what does Xunzi mean when he says that sacrifice and divination are not lhell? For practices to be WIl, in Xunzi's terminology, they have to bring about 2 proper order, even though the ultimate C2USal mechanism is ourside o rdin2ry human perception. So, if sacrifice resulted in order, it would be Jhen; if divin2tion succeeded in showing what 2ctivitics arc 2uspicious, it would be .mll. But sacrifice and divin2tion C2nnor do these things. and the belief thOlt they can represents for Xunzi a foolish attempt to control 2nd understand

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the cosmos-things that are outside the powers of hum:.!.ns and their arts. Humans can bring about order only by (ultil/uing themselves to utilize their

many of these texts. Contrary to the usual interpretation. its argument is in some ways comparable ro that found in portions of the Xunzi. In particular. unlike almost all the texts discussed thus far. the Kid zhuan was wtiuen in JUppOft of the om of divin:nion. Unlike the critiques in texts such as the "Neiye and "Xinshu,· [he authors of the Xi,i v,uan argue strongly for the efficacy of divination. And unlike Xunzi, the authors of the Kid v,uan support divination not because it is Wtn but bec.ause it is jhtn.

faculties properly and thereby ffi:.Uce the myriad things serve them, but they do not have the power to control the wind and (';lin. But sacrifice and divination are still wtn: if understood properly. these practices help humans to understand their proper role in the cosmos. Thus, Xunzi's argument is based not on a claim of rationalism but on the nature: of humanity and the nature of the cosmos. Xunzi opposes attempts by humans to

use sacrifice and divination to influence spirits, and he equ.ally opposes

claims that humans can themselves become spirits and directly ex:ercise control over the cosmos. His response is to argue that humans have a crucial role to play in the cosmos: the human artifices of culture and panern bring order to the cosmos not by allowing humans ro control the wind and rain bue by allowing them ro cultivate themselves properly. create a correer society. and appropriate natural objects for their own benefit. The cosmos is structured such that humans can emerge and. in this specific sense. give it order. Xunzi thus fully accepts the arguments concerning divinization and the crucial role humans play in the ordering of the cosmos. but he shifts the meaning of each of these terms d ramatically. Humans do not become like Heaven; rather. they playa Heaven-given role in bringing order to the world. And. through this argument. Xunzi provides himself a basis for supporting cultural traditions handed down from the past. Unlike the other texts discussed in this chapter, Xunzi supports sacrifice and divination and opposes the claim that humans can control or understand naeural processes.

Submitting to

me T rigrams: The Xici zhuan

The Xici zhuan. a commentary to the Yi, or Book of Changcj, is one of the most oft-cited texts in discussions of correlative cosmology in China. At first glance. it appears to be yet another late Warring States text. like the chapters of me LiiJhi chunqiu and Guanzi, arguing that a human can through cultivation come to understand the workings of the cosmos and thereby be effective in the world or, in short, become a sage. Without question. the terminology of the text, with its emphasis on a spontaneous. self-generating cosmos which the sages should strive to understand and panern themselves on, resembles that found in the roughly contemporary texts mentioned above. Nonetheless, appearances aside. the Xi,i zhuan is quite critical of

H

The .authors of the Xici zhuan argue that the cosmos operates through changes pur in motion by the alternation of yin and yang. Since change is based on a defin.able series of processes, [he alternation can be formulated numerically. The numbers of Heaven arc twenty.five, the numbers of E.arth .are thirty. In .all, the numbers of Heaven and Earth are fifty-five. Ir is by means of chese thOlt the .alrem.ariolU and rr.ansformatiolU are completed :md the ghosts and spirits are pur into morion. 61 Hence,

[0

underst.and ch.ange itself is ro understand the spirits:

The master said: "He who knows the way of alternations and tr.ansfonnatiolU undemands what it is thar the spirits (~") do." (A/~) Spirits. in this definition. are not willful agents who direct phenomena o n their own. Instead. they oper.ate through underst.andable processes of change. The key, therefore, is to undetsc.and these processes. And the way to do it, .according to the Xici zhuan. is to understand "che Pivo(.~ The Pivot is the point of the alternation of yin and yang, the basis on which all change occurs. Thus. he who understands (his mechanism is able to undersund change and hence what actions will be auspicious. And because this knowledge gives him the ability to act properly, it means [hat he, too, c.an be c.alled divine {jhtn):62 The mOISter said: the one who understands the Piv(/[. is he not divine? ... The Pivor is the minurest beginning of movement, the firn m.anifestacions of .auspiciousness. The superior man sees the Piv(/[ and acts. without waiting until the end of the d.ay." (B/s)

61. Xici :th~..", Alp: hereilUfter cited in the len. My numbering of each p.as.s.age follow. Ihe Zhu Xi arrangement . 6l. Wilbrd J. Peteuon ("Making Connection,: pp. 103-10) provide, an a cdkm diJcllJlion o{ rhe nor ion of 1/,(" in !Ix Xici zhw .. n. In what {oUow" I attempc 10 .upplemenl his ,rudy by noting the hillorkal ,igroiflcance of Ihe cuim, made in the tCXt.

.,0

However. the (ext claims that the Yi, or CIxlllgc', is also divine: The Yi is without thought and without acrion. Still and nor moving. responding and then penern.ring the ClIUSes of everything under Heaven. If it were not the mOlt di. vine (sMlI) of all under Heaven, how would it be able to parricifWt in this? (Ahe)

Moreover, the pass:!ge continues, it was only by means of the Yi that the sages were (the past tense, as I will argue lattr. is n«essary here) able to un-

derstand phenomeru: The Yi is th.lIt by whkh uges went to the limit of the deep and investigated the Pivot. Only because it is deep were they therefore able to penetrate the will of all under Heaven, only because it iJ a Pivot were they therefore able [0 complere the work of all under Heaven. Only because it is divine (six") were they therefore not hurried and yer fur, not moving and yet arriving. (Aho)

But note that it is not JUSt thac the Yi gives one access co the Pivot; in the second sentence, che authors desc ribe the Yi itself as a Pivot. Sevetal questions immediately arise. H ow can the Yi be called divine~ How can the Yi itselfbe described as a Pivot? and If it is the relet char guided the sages, then where did it come from? I will deal with each of these in rum. As Willard Peterson has convincingly argued. the basic claim of the Xi!i zhuan is [nat the Yi is itselfin accord with the processes of nature: 6l The Yi is adju.1ited [ 0 Heaven and Earth. Therefore it is able to complete and claasify me way of Heaven and Eanh. Looking up. it observes the panerns of Heaven; looking down, it examines the principles of the EarTh. (AI .. ) The reason the Yi possesses [he ability [ 0 replicare the changes of the world is th:u it possuses the P ivot of change itself.

It is for this rcuon thar the Yi pouases rhe Great PiW)[ (Taiji). Ttw generated [he: two truignia. The two insignia generated the four images. The four imagc:.s gener.Ired the eight trigrams. The eight t tigranu determine auspiciousness and inauspiciousnc:s.s. Au.spiciousness and inauspiciou.sness generate me great undertaking. (Alto) This p4SUge can be read either as a cosmogony of the universe or as a Statement of the generation of the Yi. And is precisely the point: it is both. In other words. the changes in the hexagram lines of the Yi mirror the

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DBSCENDANTS OP THII ONII

OSSCIINDANTS OF THE ONII

changes tnat occur in the narural world. and the work is thus a microcosm of the processual changes of the universe itself. The hard and the soft push each orher and generare changell and transformations. (A/:t) As a consequence, the Yi corresponds to the movement of Heaven and Earth itself The broad and the great 64 much Heaven and Earth; the alternations penetrate and march the fou r sasons; the: propric:ry of yin and yang matches the: sun and moon. The goodness of ease and simplicirll matches the utmost potency. (A/I5) But what makes the Yi invaluable for humans is chat not only dou it correspond to the moveme:nts of Heaven and Earth, but it actually penetrates these: processes and is t hus able to unde:rsand wnat changes are to come: One yin and one yang is called the Way. That which continues it is called good; that which completes it is called nature:. .. . Generating and generating is called change:. Completing the images is called Qian; imitating the modd. is called Kun. Going to the limit of numbers to understand what is to come is called prognostication; penetrating alternations is called serving. What yin and yang cannot measure is called PIc". (A/5) The: movement of t he universe is defined by the incerplay of yin and yang; che: interplay of yin and yang lines in the Yi therefore replicares the interplay of yin and yang forces in the cosmos at brge. And char which defines this interplay is divine and merefore not explicable in (emu of yin and yang. The Yi is divine precisely hc:cause it penetrates to the workings of change itself. And the process of divination grana humans- those with fomu-an understanding of these changes.

It is for thU rason mat the: power of the: milfoilstalks i. round and divine (llx"), the: power of the trigrams is square so as to understand. and the propriety of the.ix linea is changeable so as to provide:. (Aho)

mat

=

64·. The "broad- and the "gr""-I" refer 10 Qian ami Kun. re$p«tivdy; thex lerms uud 10 define Qian and Kun in ,he lines immcciiately prucciing thoR gi-= here. 6" "Ease" and "Iim~ic,iry" arc funher rcfcrrnlju ro Qian ,and Kun, rapectiyely. ~n c~r~~ line in the work ,cadi: QIm knOWI by mcam o~caJC; Kun capable by lI\C:atlI of IWlphcLty

*'

(A/I).

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Dss ceNDANTS OF THB ONB

The fim part of diyinarion involves the use of mil foil stalks, which are divine

By taking the patterns in the natural world and refining them into the eri-

and hence arruned

grams, Baori wu able to understand t he cosmos." The text then illwtrates the divine potency of the trignms by narrating how the trigrams inspired the sages to create cultural implements. k Willard Peterson correctly poinu out: "In contending that the great innova-

the ch2flges themselves. They are rhus round-like Heaven. The milroil stalks point the user to the trigrams-which ue sqwre 66 and thus within human comprehension. The lines [hen explain what is to [0

come.

Only the uges of antiquity, those who were able were able to understand how [ 0 use the: texr:

[0

perceive properly,

D ivine (s/,(,,) so as to understand what is to comc, underst anding 'io as [0 srore whu had come, who would be able to pan icip:ne in [his? h is rhose of antiquity who were

sharp of hearing and dear of vision. perceptive and underst.mding. divindy (shrll) mamal without putting people to death. This is the means by which they ilIumi· nated the way of Heaven and explored the practices of the people. (A ho) The uges of antiquity understood t he way o f H eaven and the pr.lctices of the people because o f the Yi. And where d id the Yi come fro m!

tions were inspired by trigrams and hexagrams, the 'Commen~ry' {Xici muan 1effectively subo rdinates to the Yi the uges who were venerated by the

. as cuIture heroes. .~ society Why does the Xici milan give such en:u.ordinary prominence to the Yi, even to the point of subordinating the sages themselves! I suggest that the rext is a critique of the claims being made for sagehood that were becoming increasingly common in the late Warring States period. To oppose the assertions that one can atTa.in the powers of, even become. a spirit. the rext subordinarc,s sagehood to textual authority. The impliCltions of rhis move were crucial for lare Warring States culture. Although translations o f the Xici milan commonly uciliu: the present

The sages Set forth the trigranu and observed the images. They attached words to them and clarified aUSpiciousness and inauspiciousness. (Ah)

mer

Here we seem ro encounrer a paradoll:: rhe sages creared the Yi, and yet became sages only by following the Yi. This paradox is not, however, the re-

sult of confused thinking on the part of the authors. On rhe contrary, it is precisely t he point. The lengrhy, and frequendy quoted, passage that describes the creation in detail will help explicate this point: In ancient times Baoxi (i.e., Fwdl was the king of aU under Heavm. Looking up he observed the images in Heaven. and looking down he observed the models on Earth. He observed the patterns of the birds and buns and the suitability of the UM. Near at hand he (Ook them from his body. and at a distance he took them from th ings. (B/a) Bao!:i is here poud as purely an observer of patTerns in the natural world. He generated the eight trigrams in order to understand and categoriu: these panerns;

(ense to refer to the actions of the sages, I argue, on the co ntu.ry, that th e past tense is almost always more appropriate. The Xici Wua,.'s account of the crearion of the Yi by the sages is a historical narrative, one not unmarked by problems:

AI for the arising of the Yi. w:u it not in middle antiquityf Did those who made the Yi not have anxiety and troublul (B/1) The helC2grams are d.auble to the earliest sages, but the ten: o f the Yi came later. in m iddle antiquity. And [he facr [hat such expli<:2tiolU were necessary

is a further sign of decay from the early sages: The m:uter said: "The Qian and Kun arc [he gates of the Yi. Qian is a yang thing. and Kun is a yin thing. Yang and yin unite potency, and the hard and soft have embodiment. They thereby embody the arrangements of Heaven and Earth and penetute the potency of the divine clarity (Jhc,.ming). Their appdlarions and nama are mixed but do not trall$gress. In examining their c:lttgoriudon, they are the ideas of an age of decline." (B/6)

He thereupon fi rst created me eight trigranu in orde r to penetrate the poeency of the divine clarity (shtnming) and in order to cztegonze the dispositions (qing) of the myriad trungs. (B/ a) 6,. For I fuUe. diJcullion of the (nation of [he tdgnml, s« c!u.p. a of my "m.biIl1lh<. of

66. As the audlors uphin elsewhere. "spirits (mt.o) are 1101 aquare" (Kiti v,lIIIn, A/n).

Cr...don. 61. Peeen ...... "Making Conn«tlolU; p. Ill.

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The Qi2n 2nd Kun hex.agnms may exhibit the potency of divine clarity. but me ttxt itsdf reflecu an age of decline. more specifically, me era of King Wen. at the end of the Shang dynas£)':

but the text does imply that even a new sage would need to be guided by the Yi (a1though not by the line statements). just as the great sages of antiquity were. M oreover. since the Yi is a1ready divine. this cosmology docs not appear even to entertain the possibility that t he Yi could be superseded. In short. the Xi,; muan is arguing for textua1 authority. for a commitment to past teachings, for a recognition that at best che outcome o f selfcultivation would be a replicatton of the sages of antiquity. H ence the recurrent quotations attributed to Confucius and the recurtent quotations from

As for the uising of the Yi, wu it not fitting to be du ring the end of the Yin and the tloun-rung potency of the ZhoL1~ (Wu it) not fitting [0 be at the events between King Wen and Zhou~ (BIn)

That the ten had to be composed at all was a sign of degenc;acy, of a period t hat desperately n«:ded reform.

The vision of history set forth in [he Xid thuan is one of gradual loss, with tach sOlge in the process of degeneration being marked by the need for more elaboration of the Yi. The final text of the Yi was PUt together in middle antiqui£Y.
the Shijing. When read this way. one can sec a surprising. and somewhat counterintuitive. parallel wi th the Xum;i's concerns: both texts share an interest in supporting divination as a traditiona1 practice. and both argue that we should foUow the teachings of t he past sages. But they build these argwnen ts in very different ways. The Xid Wllan argues that divination docs indeed lead to an unde rstanding of the cosmos-an argument Xunzi would have rejected as a misguided and impro per acrempt" to know H eaven. Xunzi opposed this type o f cosmological speculation because it might pull man away from a proper cultivation in me traditions of the past sages; the Xid mUlln is claiming t hat, to the contrary. cosmology and textual authority are inherendy linked. In other words, the Xid muan argues t hac cosmological knowledge depends on a nustery of the traditions of t he ancient sages. In saying this, I am not claiming t hat the authors of the Xu:i wuan were "Confucian: or that they would have perceived themselves as offering a C onfucian response to Xunzi. 69 But I am claiming that the Xid muan is making an argument fo r the au thority o f past sages and that it was presenting the Yi as the proper texrua1 autho rity for cosmological speculation.

Consequencly, a properly trained genclcnun will tum to the ¥i before he undertakes any actions: Therefore, when a gendeman is about makes a vocal inquiry to it. (Aho)

[0

take an action. or is to begin moving. he

As I read it. th is argument is directed against those who were arguing thar, through self-cultivation, one can attain sagehood and achieve divine powers. T he authors of the Xici muan. on the contrary, placed the text of me Yi between their contemporaries and divinity: we can onJy attain a proper understanding of forrone and misfortune through the Y i. The Xid zhuan docs not, o f course. argue that it would be impoasible for a new nge to ariae.

69. The diKovcy of the Mawangdui version or the text has spuked a debate ....hether the Xici lhu." wal -Collfucian" or "Daoist." Sec, in panicubr, Wallg Baoxuan, "BOlhu Xiti yu Zhanguo Qin Han DaojiJ. Yi :ruc"; and Liao Mingchun, "Lun BOlhu Xici yu jinbcn Xiti de guaori: For all u cdlmr overview of lhe dcbOlc. I t t Shaughnessy, •A .Firl! Reading of d.e Mawangdui Y(jilll Manwcripl: AJ I have o:pbincd in the lnrroclucuon. [ 0ppo$C' the attempe to categorize Waning Statu tUtl in (emu of IChoob. . .• AJ for the question of lhe rcl.adofllhip bn_ the MawangdUI and tM received VCfIIOllJ of ,be Xici d,,,,,,,, for 1M Ip«ific iuues discwKd in Ihis chaptCl", the v;uiantl berween the Mawangdiu Xid d,,,,, .. and the received tUt arc minor. Allhough the MaWJ.ngdui Xiti V,MU doe. not conuin. he pallagu concerning Ihe lat in middle antiquif)',;1 does include the Vall majority of the o.l.er .tatcmCf\1I quott.:!. ~ ra1I, I Ihink Ihe ruding ginn J.ere applies to the Mawangdlu Xlii v,...n aI well.

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DBSCBNDANTS OF THS ONS

DESCENDANTS Of THE ONI

follow the proper parrems derived from Heavcn-even if the actions of Heaven itself

Recall thar in Polynesian thought. as diltinguished from the so-called coremilm. all men are rdued to all chings by common descent. The coroUary would be that. rather than the ancestral or kindred species being tabu, Polynesian social life is a universal projecr of c~nn iNli1mc gtnirll/;s/, or even of endoa.nnibalism, since the pei)pie are genealogically rdared ro their own -natural" means of subsistence. ... AU l.UefiJ planu and animals are immanent fornu of the divine ancestors-so many .\:i"" LsII or "myri.3d bodies" of the gods. Moreover, to make root crop' accessible to man by cooking il precisely to destroy what il divine in them: their aUIOnOITlOI.U power. in the raw state. to reproduce. ... Yet the aggressive transfonnation of divine life into human substance describes the mode of produCtion as well as consumption. ... Fishing. cultivaring. constructing a canoe. or, for that matter. farhering a child are so many ways that men activdy appropriate "a life from the god."'10

A:; noted in Chapter ). the McneiwJ argues thar the s.ge must

are not always in accord with these pacrcrru. In the K id v,uan, however. the patterns that the saga found in nature themselves guide the natural world; in other words, the natural world operates by those patterns, and me sages muS[ emulate them and bring them to other humans. In the Xia zhwlln, the narur.tl world is more (hOln the repository of normacive p;mcrns that can be discovered by 2. discerning sage; it itself is normarive. Bur, like the Lllnyw and unlike the MtnciuJ. the Kid zbu/UJ relegates the period of the uges-the period when humans were able to model themselves on the cosmos-to the dist:lnr p2$C, T exrua1 authority is thus defended through a claim of gradual degeneration: the sages of :mriquiry discerned the parterns properly. and those born bter must use divinacion and the reading of hexagram line statements (0 gain access (0 the patterns. A.J. long as one submits to the divination praCtices of the Xid wuan, fortune and misfonune are fully knowable. Whereas the authors of the "Neiye" and "Xinshu had claimed fonune and misfonune to be knowable by those who practiced self-cultivation to gain the powers of spirits, the authors of che Xid v,uan argue that they are knowable only by following the traditions handed down from che ancient s.llges. H

Instead of cI.lIiming that divin.lltion has been superseded by selfcultivatio n techniques and inscead of supporting divination as w~n, the authors of the Xid v,u
'97

The concern. in other words. il to introduce discontinui£Y. to separate the divine from the human. to mark off a human realm distinct from the divine: Men thus approach the divine with a curious combination of submission and hubris whose final objecr is to transfer to themselves the life that the gods originally poness. continue to embody, and alone can impart. It is a complex rdation of Ju pplicarion and expropriation. successivdy bringing the sacred co. and banishing it from. the human domain. Man. then, lives by a kind of periodic deicide. Or, the god u separated from the objecrs of human existence by acu of piety that in social life would be rantamount to theft and violence-not to speak of cannibalism.?! In this sense, Fijian sacrifice operates according to principles very similar to those found in urly Greece (see Chapter 1). If we were to accept [he recurrent arguments of sinologists. we would certainly conclude that China, tOO, is monogenetic and anumes continui£Y berween the human and the divine realms. And. at first glance, much of the evidence appears to support such a re.1ding. In looking at the sacrificia1 material discussed in C hapter 1, one could conclude that the predominant concern wu similar to that Sahlins describes for Polynesia: an attempt to create discontinuiry between the human and che divine realms, to distinguilh humans and spirits. to appropriate for human use phenomena controlled by spirits ( for enmple, divinations for the purposes of opening a field for agriculture or setting che boundaries of the capical in part revul.1 desire to appropriate land controlled by divine powers and mark it off for human use). One could similarly argue that the correlative cosmologies of the fourth and 70. 71.

Sahlin., 111,...1, of HlllofJ. pp. ILl - I). Ibid" p. II).

,,8

DESCBNDANTS OF THE O NI!

third centuries Be reveal ;I recurrent belief in me absolute consubstafltwiry of all things within a single ancestral line: everything is born nom the One. and thus literally everything in the cosmos is rebted by birTh. In such a rud· ing. China, n o m the Bronze Age through the correl.uive cosmologies of the hue Waning S tates period. is pro[Orypicilly mo nogenetic. But I have argued for a different reading of this material. In the: ucrif1cia1 and rituallctions of Bronze Age C hina. t he concern for dem2fcaring a humom realm apart from the divine was o nly a part (and a lessq parr at that) of the whole story. The main concern was to transform the spirit world inw a pantheon of ancestors that acted on behalf of the living king. H umans were not just claim ing land &om the spirits; they were transforming t he spirits into (deceased) humans. The concern, in sho rr, W~ to transform a capricious and potentially antagonistic spirit world into a hierarchical pantheon of ordered genealogical descent interested in irs living descendants' welfare. The goal was not to introduce disco ntinuity but to anthropomorphize the divine and thus create genealogical continuity, Both divine and h uman powers were to be transformed into ancestors and descendantS, And the paradigmatic relationship was that o f the king and H eaven-through the sacrinces, Heaven would become the father to the king: hence the royal title ·Son of H eaven: Several of the correlative cosmological textS played with these models of ancestral. sacrifice because their authors wished to make comparable argumenu-with a crucial twist, Whereas divination and sacrifice assumed a world populated by spirirs who had control over natural phenomenaspirits who were to be tranSformed intO ancestors-the correlative textS posit.a cosmos descended from a single ancestor. More pointedly. if t he sacrificial pr.actices assumed an agonistic world, the texts discU$S(:d in this chapter argue for .a single, COntinuous cosmos within which all gods, spirits. humans, and nature are linked by chains of genealogical descent_ The debates then turned on the rebtionship between t he sage .and that .ancestor. S hould he strive to be the proper descendant of the One and follow the n.atural patterns laid down by the ancestor~ This is the position taken by the Tlliyi Jfftl1g Jhui and the · Chengfa· ch.apter of the Shiliujil1g. Or should the sage go .ag.ainst t he natural genealogy and return to the ancestor:' This is the position of the lAozi, which argues that the sage should return to the One, gain its powers. and thereby give birth to .a world of his own. By linking himself to the ancestor of the cosmos, the sage generatea hi' own o r-

D SSCSNDANTS 01' THS O NS

'"

dered political realm. Or does the cosmos work in such .a way that the proper descendant comes to be like his ancestor~ This is the position of the "Benshenf chapter of the Lumi chunqiu: the Son of Haven, if he cultivates himself properly, ultim.ately becomes like Heaven and exercises the same powers over t he cosmos dut H eaven had earlier done. T h roughout these textS, the concern is not to demarcate t he human from the divine but the exact opposite- to link man wit h the .ancestor of the cosmos, either through the return of the sage to the .ancestor, o r through the growth of the sage into the power that the ancesto r was, or t hrough the divininriori of t he sage himself. or through .a subordin.arion of oneself to the movements of.a series o f inuges handed down by the sages of the p.ast. In other words, the concern, ~ with 50 mmy Warring St.ates texrs, is with the divinintion of m.an rather than the de-divini~tion of nature. And the recurrent concern of all these texts w.as to deny the agonistic world of the sacrificial specialists who were dominant.at the courts. The authors are thus playing with the mood o f ancestral sacrifice, but they d o not assume monogenesis: in all these practices, monogenesis is [he goal, not an assumption. Instead, t he authors usc .ancestral sacrince bec.ausc it provides a perfect voc.abulary for their claims: just .as in ancestnl s.acrifice, correlative cosmology involves taking spiritS and m.aking them into ancestors who c.an then be understood or even controlled. And the resulting interpby that we h.ave noted in this chapter is therefore similar to that discussed in C h.apter I: the living could be presented ~ simply fo Uowing t he wishes of the ancestors, or they could be presented as creating the ancestors and p.acifying them. The concern in both t he sacrificial systems and the correlative texu is to anthropomorphize the divine, either by making the divine intO the image o f man through sacrifices or by divini2:ing man and thus literally making the divine human. But. t he .agonistic world assumed in sacrifice is denied in correbtive cosmology, and correlative cosmology granD t he sage much more power over th is world th.an does any sacrincial system . And it was precisely in opposition to positions such as these that Xunzi and the .aurhors of the Xid Willi" reasserted the importance of divination and ( in the case of Xunzi) sacrince in order to assert a form of d iscontinuity. with hum.ans and Heaven fully sep.araced. In the Xi,i WUIln, for example, hum.ans :act properly by following.a set of refined im.ages that crystallize, in a ae ries of full and broken lines, the movements of [he cosmos. The images are continuous with t he pivot of the universe, but humans. bec.ausc they .are

'00

DBSCBNDANTS OF TH I! ONI!

separate fro m the pivor, can act properly only by s~bo rdinating themselves [0 those images. The Yi, therefore, was placed between humanity and the rest of the cosmos. Divination was thus reinsuted, although without the agonisric cosmology defined earlier divination pncrices. All of this brings us b2Ck ro Graner. ~ noted e2rlier in this chaput, Graner argued that Chinese kingship arose from the .sacrifice of rotemic creatures: the rulers conquered the gods their people had earlier worshipped. Levi-Str.luss-correcdy- would have questioned G ranet's~ discussion of such themes in terms of an actual evolution from totanism to sacrifice-or in terms of In evolution ar all. since Graner was discussing textS dating aI· ffi05( exclusively from the third and second cemuries Be . I have t herefore fol. lowed Uvj·Srrauss in discuuing (he texts in terms of t he ways they posit continuity 2nd discontinuity. But Gr.anet's point is crucw: even the sutemenu 2bout continuity reve:al 2n attempt [0 gOlin for the s.age tremendous power over the cosmos. Reading Gr.aner through Uvi-Str2USS t hus gives us 2 powerful me2ns of correcting the m2ny sinologists who .argue ch2c the urly Ch inese .assumed 2 continuous universe- 2 position, ironic.ally, ch2t m2ny of them developed by ruding Gr.anet. Correluive cosmology should nor be interpreted .as 2 gener.al ·ChineseW2y of thinking. nor should it be understood.as part of a shift: fro m ·religionto ·philosophy: It w.as, ruher. an attempr to tr.anscend the conflict between humans and spirits by overcoming the world of spirits .altogether: spiritS and the natural phenomen2 they control, .as well .as humankind, are pbced in a descent line emanating from a single 2ncestOr, with whom the sage. if he follows cerrain techniques, can p in a special relatio nship. Correlative cosmology was not 2n as.sumprion in the Warring SUtes period; it was a rhetoric: of critique.

mat

5 The ascension of the spirit Liberarion, Spirir Journeys, and Celesrial Wanderings

T he Shiwtn (T en questions), one of the textS discovered at Mawangdui, discw.scs how one becomes a spirit, becomes liberated from one's form, 2nd ascends to the huvens: Long life il generated through storing and accumubcing. AI for the increasing of this life, above one explores the Haveru, and below one distributes to the Earth. H e who is npable will invariably become a spirit. H e will therefore be able to be lib· erated from his fonn. He who d arifies the great way (ravw and traverses the doucU.!

Although this texr was discovered fairly recently, the themes of liber.arion and ascension 2ppe2r in 2 number of received works from rhe late W2rring Su ees and u rly H m periods .as well, such as the Chuci and Zhullrlgzi. Mod· ern an.alyses of these narrarives of spirit journeys and ascensions oft:en refer either to eulier sham:mistic rraditions o r co later religious Daoism. I will briefly review these claims and then argue for a different approach.:

I. ShiWfn. in M4w4ngJwi H~n",u &olbu. 4' 146; hereinafter d ied in Ihe rcxr. My Iransllllion of Ihi, p;lss.ge, aJ well as aD 0100 p;asuges from , he S!,iw,n, it heav~y indeblf
Ibkl .. I'P' II~- a,. 1. Pordon. oflhu chapter arc u~n from my 'The AKenlion orlhe Spirit."

""

TH8 A$CBNSION OF THB SPIRIT

THE ASCBNSION OF THB SPIRIT

phenomenon that arose 2t a speciSc and ( rdative to the chronology provided

How co Rud che A.scension Literature

by these schol2rs) late period of time.

Many scholars explain (he uccruion ijrerarure as a sulVival of earlier sh.amanisric traditions dating [0 the Bronze Age. K. C. Chang. for cnmpJe, reads the various mentions of spirit journeys in third- and second-century Be

writings as remnants of an urlier shamanism [hat had dominated the cultu res ofNeolimic and Bronze Age China.l This shunanistic worldview was predicated on the belief that Heaven and Earth were intea:onnected. and shamans were perceived to be the figures who connected. the two reaInu:

,he shamans-religious personnel equipped with the power (0 fly across the different layers of the universe with the help of animals and a whole range of rituals and paraphemalia-were chiefly responsible for the HeavcnH4 Earth communication. Chang thus reads the asceruion literarure in telW such as t he Chuci as ~shamanistic poems" containing ~descriptions of shamans and their ascent and descent.~ s Similar arguments can be found in the work of Arthur Waley, Isabelle Robinet, and Jordan Paper, who refers to passages from the Cbuci and ZhuQl1gzi as enmples of ·shamanic ascent.~6 Perhaps not surprisingly, Mircea Euade adopted this approach as well:·~ for the Daoists. whose legends abound with asceruioru and every other kind of miracle. it is probable that they elaborated and systematized the slummic technique and ideology of protohistorical China.~ He refers explicitly to the I uan you~ poem in the Chuci as shamanic: • A long poem by Qu Yuan mentions numerow ascents to the 'gates of heaven: fantastic horseback journeys, ascent by t he rain7 bow-all of chern limiliar motifs in shamanic folklore: There are, however. several problems with this t heory. In addition to me questions about the shamanism hypothesis tlIIised in Chapters I and ~. there are. in t he exUnt eorpw, no references to spirit journeys or ascensions in China until (at the earliest) the fourth century BC. We 2re dealing not with 2 tradition whose roots lie deep in the Neolithic (or P21eolithic) but with a

). K. C. Chang. AIt, MJIh •• roJ AU...!, pp. 44-5S. 4 . K. C. Clang. n... AIt'-oloDof Aoorictl 0,;,.", p. 41S. s. K. C.
n...

Dr~"j"

pp. SS-Sl. ,. ~c,ShoI ..... ~iJ",. pp. 4S0- SI .

">3

n...

Moreover, the connection between the ascension liter.arure and a beliefin 2 shamanistic/ monistic cosmos does not hold. J ust as with the issues concerning self-divinizuion claims discussed in C hapter 2 , there is again a cle2r par.allei with Greece: references to spirit journeys 2nd the ascension of t he spirit appear widely in G reek mcts at roughly the same time as they do in Chin.:a.· H ere again. Clung's attempt to discinguish Chin2 and its shanunistic/ monistic cosmology from the West and it3 dualistic cosmology is unconvincing. Spirit journeys and ascensions cannot be linked to anyone rype of cosmology: claims of ascension can be made from either a dualistic or a monistic stance. Indeed, such claims were based on both monistic and dualistic cosmologies in Greece, and. I will argue, the $:lOle is true in early China: several early Chinese texts posit a monistic cosmology, but others are, I will try to demons(f2[e, at least panially dualistic. The China/WeSt model. in other words, breaks down again, as does any attempt to connect ascension with monism. H ow have ascension claims in Greece been inrerpreted~ Until recently. t he dominant explan2tion for the emergence of asceruion Iitenrurc in Greece was diffusion. Wilhelm Sousser. for eumple, saw that liter.arure as a diffusion from Persi2. 9 (This is slightly different from Dodds's argument that the Greeks wete influenced by Siberian sh.amanism via the Scythians (see Chapter 2.]. Sousset was attempting [0 account for a particular rype of ascension pr.actice, and, for example, he traced Plato's narrative about Er to Persia.)IO This argument has since been widely rejected on the grounds that the Persian teXts from which the Greek pnctices purportedly derived are demonsttably later man che Greek teXts in question.1I Anomer attempt to account for ascension nartliltives dispenses with diffusionist explanations entirely. loan Culianu argues chat ascension is simply a product of the human mind. n The problem with this argument, however, is that it provides no eIC:-

3. A clur example would b¢ the narmi", of the soul in Pbro', Pi>an/rvs, whith I dilcun brer in lhit dupter. 9. Boune!. Dn- Him ...tI,ti.. 0:1.,. Sttlt. 10. Ibid .. p. 66. PlaIa', narrative on Er i, found in the A.pub/il. book 10. 11.5«. Cullanu, PJ~""!llldi' 1. pp. ,6- 1). II . Cullanu, PJ"ho,.,aclill.

THE ASCI!NS I ON OF T H E SPIRIT

planation why particular claims of ascension are made at particular times: cultural and historical specificity is again undervalued. In discussing the emergence of ascension literature, we thus find ourselves in much the same position as we were in Chapter 'l in accounring for the emergence of self-divinization claims. T he arguments for eimer survival or diffusion fail to convince. Not only is empirical evidence lacking for either explanation, but neither explanation in fact expbins anything. To s:.l.y th:u ascension literature appears in the third-century DC texts as.a survival of an earlier shamanism or as a diffusion ITom another culture leaves aside the basic question of why authors began discwsing ascension at this time. Even if the authors did get the notion ITom earlier sources or ITom another culture (and evidence is lacking for either argument), this does not explain why they appropriated it. And ascribing ascension to a universal way of thinking Dils to explain the DCt that claims for ascension are made only at certain rimes in certain contexts. Instead of interpreting late Warring States and early H an ascension texts as remnan[S of an earlier shamanism or as products of either diffusion or a universal mind-set, I will analyze these texts from a historical perspective and ask why the themes of becoming a spirit, being released from one's form, and ascending to the H eavens became so important in the late Warring States and early Han. 1 will ask what claims were being made in each text, and why, in the context of the time, such claims were seen as significant. As for the attempt to read these texts in terms of later Daoism, there is no question that religiow Daoist movements utilized notions of diviniu.tion and ascension. In Dct, as many scholars have pointed OUt, the reference in the passage quoted above to xingjie (being liberated ITom one's fonn) strongly resembles the later Daoist notion of mijie (being liberated from the corpse). However, labeling any of these third- or second-century DC ideas as H HDaoist is dangerow. Our first goal should be to understand the claims being made in these textS in terms of the contemporary context. Since there is no evidence that any of the figu res making these claims considered themselves to be HDaoist,· the term is not helpful in analyzing thei r arguments. The later appropria tion of these ideas by religiow Daoist movementS is a ll separate issue. I will hint at my own response at the end of the concluding chapter and will discuss the issue in depth in a forthcoming study. I,. Aruu Seidel and Donald H~rp"" 1u.V<' d01I( pioneering work de,nonll raling dte impli. UliOIU of Warring SUlCI and Han paleographic find. for our undemanding of i1~ rcligiow

>0,

T H B ASCBNSIO N O F THB SPIRIT

T he Liberatio n of the S pirit: Q uestio n Four of the Shiwen T he first question that arises with the Shiwm is W hat son of a text is this? Donald H arper, one of the leading schob.rs of W arring States paleographic materials and author of a superb translation of this text, argues that we should see textS like the Shiwen as embodying a core set of elite practices during the Warring States period. Indeed, he argues, the texts represent a moment when practices that had earlier been the preserve of religious officianrs and shamans were written down and became pan of a more widely transmitred set of teachings: As documented in the M~w~ngdui m(dicai manuscriptS, inc~nurions and magicordigious operarions were collected mgccher with other medical recipes. If such pracrices h~d once ban the preserve of rdigious officianu and shamans, or formed part of oral folklore, they ~cquired a new kind of prestige as they were incorporated into the books of specialists in natural philosophy ~nd occult kno wledge. Magic b«ame a technique to be taught and transmitted in books :along with other techniques; it belt came a segment of occult thought. In Harper's view, the practices described in these texts should be understood as common among elites of the day: "I assume that the hygieni' pra,cices in Li fils' manuscripts we re cwtomary, Tathe r than exceptional, among people of his class; and that the Way of Ancestor Peng' in Yinshu was a standard H1s guide to healthfulliving. And if texts such as the Shiw~n are representative H of elite practices, texts such as the "Neiye and Zhuangzi should be read as philosophical and mystical programs-a product of philosophers, not of reIigiow practitioners: -rhe Mawangdui and Zhmgjiashan macrobiotic hygiene texts describe a kind ofbaseJine macrobiotics hygiene for the elite that focwes on care of the body, not on the more philosophical and mystical proHl6 grams of the Neiye: Zhuangzi, or LAozL Thw, for Harper, these texu are radically different in nature: the Shiwcn is more popubr, whereas the HNeiye" and Zhuangzi are more "philosophical" or "mystical: I disagree. The Shiwm was written as a response to other posipractices oul of which Daoism later arOse:. See, e.g.. Seidel. "Trace! of Han Religion lI"al Texu Found in Tombs": and Harper, "Warring S{~tel, Ch'in and Han PeriodJ: 14. Harper. E.r1J Oint/( M.di'4/ UI"4r~rt, p. 41· Is.lbid., p, 116. uS. Ibid .. p. 114.

in

Fu-

>0'

>0,

THII ASCENSION OF THB SPIR IT

THE ASCBNSION OF THB SPIRIT

{ions, and reading it as representative of a common sct of pr:.u.:cices and rhus distinct from other, ·philosophicar teru strikes me as potentially misleading. Moreover, the Shiwen is, as I show later in this chapter. generically identical to [Wo narratives from the "Outer Chapters· of the Zhllangzi-a teXt that Harper would cwsify as ·philosophical" Finally. I question, for the reasons elaborated at the beginning of chis ch2pter. any arrempc [0 re:ad the Sbiwm as an outgrowth of an earlier sham2niscic folklore.

month of the life of an embryo in a womb. 19 This notion that life begins with a flowing into me fonn sets the background for some of the crucial claims made later in the narrative. The remainder of the narrative consists ofRong Cheng's response:

In short, I question the classifications of"popub.r" versus ':philosophical." It is not clear that the Shiwm is more popular than the "Neiyc" or the Zhll(lngU' All three texts .are polemics. and all in f2cr use a similar form of argumentation. I will read the ShiwQI as part of the debates discussed in the preceding chapters and will argue that it is one in a series of claims made in t he late Warring SOltes and early Han concerning the potentiaLs of humans to liber.are themselves from the forms of the world and travel to other realms. Before turning to the analysis, r should note that the precise placement within the Shiwfll of a passage discussed below is a topic of debate. The edi· tors of the Mawangdui texts initia.lly placed this section within question numbet six. However, the passage makes no sense there. Question numbet six is concerned with the use of particular sexual practices for self· cultivation-topics that are not discussed .ar all in this narrative. Qiu Xigui has argued, convincingly in my opinion, that the passage belongs insread in question number fou r-a dialogue between Huangdi and a certain Rong Cheng concerning longeviry.17 By providing a close reading of the entire question, I hope to help demonstrate the strength of Qiu Xigui's suggestion. The narrative opens with Huangdi asking Rong C heng why people live and die: Huangdi asked Rong Cheng. "When people fim extend rhe pure that flows inro their form, what is obtained so that they live:' When this flowing into form becomes a body, what is loS[ so that they die:' Why is it that, among people of the rime, some are bad and others are good, some die young and others live lon~ I desire to hear why people's 'Ii flourishes or yidds, rdaxes or strengthens." (4: 146) "Flowing into the fonn" refers [0 the gest.arion of the embryo. IS Another Mawangdui text, the Tai,han shu, uses the same term to refer to the first

I'. Qiu Xigui. "Mawangdui yiJhu lhidu IllOyi." Harper alao followl Qiu'l recomnu:n· dation. L8. Harper, &n1 Oimsr Mtdicar ULtI"'LUrt, p. }gJ~l.

Rong Cheng answered, "If Your Majesty dCllires to be long.lived, then accord with and observe the disposition of Heaven and Eanh. The 'Ii of Heaven is exhausted monrhly and then flourishes monthly. It can therefore live long. The 'Ii of Eanh is yearly cold and hot, and anger and ease take from each other. The Eanh is therefore lasting and does not decay. Your M:aJesty must examine the disposition of Heaven and Earch and pur it into practice in himself: (4: !J¢) Both H eaven and Earth consist of qi, and both follow cycles. Heaven's qi flourishes and is e,mausted monthly. (One manifestation of this, presumably, is the cycle of waxing and waning of the moon.) And the balancing of the qi of earth by cold and hot leads to the .seasonal cycle. The key for self· cultivation lies in examining these qualities and putting them into practice wirhin oneself. H owever, only a man of the Way is able to fully do so: There are signs that can be understood. At the prCllent moment, even a sage is not capable of this; only
19. TQiclJ"n sJ,w, j'l MQ"'QMgcJui Hnmw Nsh, 4: 1)6. See o.i~tst

MrJirQr /.Ir, 'Qrw'r, p. )78.

the rrandarioll in Harper, f,,'/1

>0'

THE ASCBNSION OF THB SPIRI T

THE ASCENSION OF THB SPIRIT

The key to longevity lies in obtaining the utmost essence. The implic;!tion here is that spirit is born from a concentration of essence and an accumulation of the signless. And when spirit is abundmt, it will flow into one's form. The image of "flowing into the form· (lill xillg) clearly refers back (0 Huangdi's initial question concerning the birth ofhumws. By means of this initial cukivation. Rong Cheng is arguing. the spirit will once again fill one's form as it did;l.t the rime of initial birth. In many ways, the argument thus (If is bued on a lIoc29ulary and cosmology highly reminiscent of those found in much of the self-cultivation literature from [he W2rring SUres period. For example, as was discussed in Chapters ,. and 4. respectively. the "Neiyc" and ·Xinshu· chapters make a srrikingly similar set of claims. The :arguments of such teXlS :are built around the interrelated terms ii, essence (jing), and spirit (slxn). Both jing and men are defined as highly refined ii-definitions that the Shiww is utilizing as well. And, like the Shiwe7I, one of the goals of human cultivation is to concentrate more of this essence and spirit- this highly refined qi-within one's body. H H Despite the apparent similarities between the "Neiye and HXinshu chapters and this portion of the Shiwcn, however, there are also several crucial differences. The arguments of the "Neiye and HXinshu reSt on the claim of:a monistic cosmos: the entire universe is composed of ii, 'and spirit, me most highly refined qi, controls the less rarified qi. Accordingly, he who accumulates more of this refined qi within himself gains great power ro understand and control phenomena, avoid injuries and disasters, and understand auspiciousness and inauspiciousness without resorting to divination. All these arguments rest on the claim of monism: since the universe is composed of qi, and since all change is a product of the alterations and tr.lnsformatioos of this qi, then spirits, the most highly refined fonn of qi, are able ro control phenomena md understand the proper movements of the universe.. And, since hum:ans have this spirit within themselves as well, they can, with H proper cultivation, ultimately become (it is argued in the HXinshu chapters) ')Il spirits. The Shiww shares some of these concerns and much of this vocabulary, but the argument develops in a very different direction. Whereas the highest H scate that a human can reach in the ·Xinshu is that of a sage, the Shiwfn explicirly States that its teachings are aimed at ·one of the Way: The authors

me

H

H

>0,

of the $biwen are proclaiming themselves ro be in possession of a higher teaching than that possessed by sages. And only one of the Way understands that "the utmost essence of Heaven and Earth is born from the sign less, grows in the formless, becomes complete in the bodiless: Essence is born, grows, and becomes completely separate from the forms-and only the one of the Way fully grasps this. Essence, in other words, is not simply a more refined type of what exists H in the forms; the twO are distinct. In contrast to the authors of the "Neiye and HXinshu· chapters, the authors of the Shiwen ate not necessarily committing themselves to an explicitly monistic cosmology. There is no claim here chat everything is composed of qi; ramer, the argument is presented in terms of the relationship of qi, essence, and spirit on the one hand to fonns on the other. I am certainly not trying to argue that the framework here is comparable to me fully dualistic claims o£ for example, Gnosticism. It is possible th:at the authors of the Shiwcn would have held th:at the form is in fact unrefined qi, and thus their position would still be, at a fundamental level, monisric. My point is, rather, mat the argument itself is couched in a dualistic framework: instead of arguing, as other authors certainly did, that forms were simply unrefined qi and thus capable of being understood and conrrolled by more refined (more spiridike) qi, the authors here m:ake no claims concerning the substance of forms. Whatever their position on the monism (or lack thereof) of the cosmos, the argument itself rests on a dualism between fonn and spirit. The implications of this will become dear as we continue to follow the texc. Rong Cheng next explains how spirit should be drawn inco the form: As for the way of inhaling 'Ii, one must direct it ro the extremities. Euence will be born and not CUt off. Above and below. all is essence. Cold and warmth are peacefully born. Breathing must be deep and long-luting. The new 'Ii is easy to hold fast to. Stale qi is old; new qi is long-lived. He who is good ac controlling qi makC$ the stale qi dissipate nightly and the new qi collect in the morning so as to penetrate the nine apertures and fill the six cavitiC$. (4: [47) The method recapitulates Rong Cheng's earlier statement that the practitioner needs to put into practice the disposition of Heaven and Earth. Thus, JUSt as the qi of Heaven becomes exhausted and then flourishes, so must the ruler do the same with his own qi. Moreover, this must be done in accord with the earthly seasons:

THB ASCBNSION OF THB SPIRIT

TH E ASCENSION OF T HE SPIRIT

There are prohibitions for eating 'Ii: in the spring avoid turbid JQng, in the summer avoid the hot winds, in the aurumn avoid rhe frigid mist, in rhe winter avoid icy Jill, Discard the four defects, and then breathe deeply so as to achieve longevity. (4: 147)

This practice is a continuation of that already laid out. Rong Cheng is telling

This parallel berween Heaven and the ruler continues: As for the intem of breathing in the moming: when brealhing OUt, strive to harmo20 nize with Heaven; when bruthing in, estimate the duOLlity of the doors as if galhering in a deep pool. Then the old 'Ii will be daily exhausted, and the new 'Ii will daily 110m·ish. And then the form will glow deeply and be filled ~rh essence, One can therefo re live long. (4: 147) The consequence of such a pracrice is, again, rhar rhe fonn becomes filled wirh essence, and one will thus, like Heaven .nd Ean:h, live long. Rong Cheng t hen outlines the type of breathing th.e ~hould oo::c ur in each of the four periods of the day: As for the intent of breathing during the day: exhOLling and inhaling must be subtle, the urs and eyes must be keen and perceptive, the yin and yang mUSt move the qi, Within, ehere is nothing dense or rorten, Thus the body is without pains or injuries. As for the intent of breathing at dusk: deeply bruthe. long and carefully, cause the ears co not hear, and thereby peacefully go to bed. The hUll and po will be peaceful in the form. Therefore you can live long. As for breathing at midnight: when you awake, do not alter rhe form in which you were sleeping. Deeply and carefully expel your strength, with the six cavities all shining forth, You will uke longevity to the extreme. (4: 147)

sition is like mat of H eaven and Earth; a constant replenishment of qi fills the fonn with essence and spirit and thus allows it to be long-lived. At rh is point, the nar~tion shifts to t he longevity of the spirit: If you wish to make the spirit long-lived, you must use the skin's patterlUl to breathe. \\/hen it comes [0 controlling the essence of qi, one exirs duth and enters life. Happy and joyous, one uses this to fill the form. This is called concentrating the essence. Controlling the 'Ii h:u an alignment. The task lies in accumulating essence.. \\/hen essence flourishes, it invariably leaks. The es$Cnce that e][its must be supplemented. As for when to supplement what has leaked: do it during sleep. (4: 147)

Ha~

(&"11 Chi"... M.Jil~1 LiItl'4Im, p.

Huangdi to contin ue filling h is fonn with concentrated essence. Exit11 and enter $0 as to cultivate the skin's pattem. u When the firm and white ace completed within, what sickness can there be:' As for this life having misfortUne. ir is invariably because the essence of the yin has leaked our and the hundred vessels have become infirm and decrepit. HappinC5s and anger will not be rimdy, one will nor dariJ}t the great way. and the 'Ii of life will depart rum. The common man livC5 recklessly and then depends on ritual specialistS and doctots. When one hu lived half one's years,21 one's form will invariably be buried young. To kill onesdf by laboring in affairs is truly lamentable and pirifuL (4: (48) In the final stage, one can store up the essence to such a point thar rhe 'Ii does not leak ou~ \\/hercver death and life reside, rhe discerning man regulates them, By solidifying what is bdow and storing up the essence, me qi does not leak out. If the mind controls death and life, who can be defeated by them:' Carefully hold fast and do nor lose it, and long life will continue across generations. For continuous generarions there will be contentment, joy, and long life. Long life is generated through sroring and accumulating. As for the increasing of chis life, above one obsetves in the Huvens, and below one distributC5 to the Earth. He who is capable will invatiably become a spirit. He will therefore be able to be liber.l.ted from his form. (4: 148) The successful adept ultimately becomes a spirit and achieves liberation from his form.

The goal of all these exe rcises is to gain the practitioner a fonn whose dispo-

lO.

'"

3!HII.)

luggem that lhe term gNi1i4ftllll

'iii be read aJ "dual' entry doorway: rererring to the nomill,

Huangdi's initial questions revolved around the flowing inro form thar oo::curs at rhe beginning of existence: Whar is such a life and how can it be preserved! Rong C heng began by expla.ining how the life span of this form could be extended. But the ultimate goal is to become liberated £Tom one's fonn altogether. One begins rh e proo::ess by cultivating the fonn in o rder to keep the spirit within it, Next one cultivates the spirit within the form until it becomes long-lasting. Finally. one becomes the spirit, and the spirit is liberated from the form altogether. Human life, in other words, normally

a" The Ie<:tion rhll! Qiu Xigui tw argued Ihould be moved &om question six to quurion four (uips 52 -59) begiru here. u, Harper ("",11 Oti'Ust Mtdk41 Lir.,4r.,., p, 397"') convinCingly argues tlUt the characIU tr.ulIcribed here as m
"'
.,

THB ASCBNSION OF T HB SPIRIT

THB AscaNSION OF THS SPIRIT

begins with the joining oHorm and spirit; but 'since forms deteriorate, each life must come to an end. However, if life can be concentrated only in the spirit, then immortality is poMible. Once this occurs, Rong Cheng argues, one becomes liberated from all boundaries thar would normally limit the fonn:

power over it. By accumulating essence within himself, the adept becomes a spirit-able to understand changes, avoid being harmed by them, and even gain control over them. The cosmology of the "Xinshu" chapters is one of hierarchical monism, and one's goal is to gain more and more control over the world of forms by becoming ever more refined. In contrast, question four of the Shiw~n calls for the liberation of the spirit from the world of forms. When the adept becomes a spirit, he becomes one with Heaven and Earth, traverses the cosmos. and does not die. The basis for chis argument lies precisely in the claim of a distinction between-and the potential separability of-the spirit and the fonn. The concern here is not understanding the less refined qi of the world of fonns or gaining power over them or avoiding being harmed by them; the goal is to use the form to accumulate and store essence until one escapes the fonn altogether. A closer scrutiny of the term xingjie-libef3.rion from the form-will make this point clearer. We have seen the te rm jit.liberation, several times before. In an anecdote from the -Inner Chapters" of the Zhuangti discussed in Chapter 3. Zi You raught the imporrance of xianjie, a liberation from bonds. For Zi You, this meant a full acceptance of the forms within which the Fashioner of Things has placed us: we are liberated when we stOp trying to overcome the order of Heaven and ",ccept the form in which we have been placed. Whereas the Zhua>1gti calls on us to accept the processes of life and death, the Shiw~n teaches a transcendence of death. Zhuangzi's sage achieves liberation by accepting his form; the adept of the Shiw~>1 by leaving his form. In other texts, however. the claim is that one can be freed from the usual limits of the human form. In the "Neiye: the claim is tha t grasping the one word allows one to survey the cosmos: "With the liberation of the one word, one explores (cha) Heaven above. reaches to Earth below, and encirdes and fills the nine regions." We saw a similar argument in the ·Chengfa" chapter of the Shiliujing: "The liberation of the One allows an exploration (cha) of H eaven and Earth." But in neither case does this involve a separation of the spirit from the body: the argument is that the human form is limited, but gras ping the One allows the adept to understand the cosmos as ifhe were a spirit-as if, in other words, he were not limited by a human form. The authors of the Shiwen passage have shifted the argument. H ere, the successful adept does indeed become a spirit, transcend the limitations of the human body, and explore the heavens personally. Instead of teaching that

He who clarifies the great way tnvds and traverses the clouds. From the Collected Jade above, as the water flows he can traverse far, as the dragon ascends he can reach high, fast and nOt wearied of strength. (4: 148-49) Rong Cheng concludes with an anecdote about a certain Wucheng Zhao: [Seven graphs missing.} Wucheng Zhao [twO graphs missing} did not die. Wucheng Zhao used the four seasons as his support and Heaven and Earth as his alignment 0;>1g). Wucheng Zhao was born together with the yin and yang. The yin and yang do not die; Wucheng Zhao can be seen with them. The master who possesses the Way is also like this. (4: 149) The significance of Rong Cheng's earlier claim thar "the utmosr essence of Heaven and Earth is born from the signless. grows in the formless, becomes complete in the bodiless" now becomes clear. The utmost essence with which the practitioner fiUs himself allows him to Jeave the world of forms and join Heaven and Earth. Like them. he never dies. Wucheng Zhao thus takes Heaven and Earth as his alignment. The word that I am translating as "alignment" here is jingo This is the same word (along with ying. "orient") that. as discussed in the Introduction, was used to describe the aligning of the cosmos by rwo spirits in the "Jingshen" chapter of the Huaimm~i. It is also the same word, discussed in Chapter 4, used in both the T aiyi shtngshui and the "Yousht chapter of the Lushi chunqiu to describe the alignment of the cosmos. As I will discuss in detail in Chapter 7. the authors of the "Jingshen" chapter of the Huai>1an~i were arguing that spirits arranged the alignment of H eaven and Earth. In this pusage from the Shiwffl. however, the implication appears to be that He
THE ASCENSION O F THE SPIR I T

THE ASCENSION OF THE SPIRIT

one should accept one's form, or that grasping the One allows one to tr2n scend the limitations of one's form, the authors here are arguing that one can fully d ivinizc: oneself and transcend the world of forms altogether. Not only arc self·divinization practices not based on an assumption of monism, but the Shiwt" teX( under d iscussion here does not imply a monistic worldview at all The goal is thus to :wert not continuity but discontinuity and separate the divine from the human-with the crucial proviso that the adept stay on the d ivine side. In the sc:lf·divinizarion process; the adept nur· rutes mat divine element in himself and then CUts off the human elements. Divinizarion is a product of d iscontinuity. The fact that this argument is presented in the form of a dialogue wim Huangdi is of interest :u well. In the ·Chengfa" chapter of the Shilil4ji"g, Li Hei's admonition to grasp the O ne is directed at Huangdi. and it is part of a larger argument about bringing order to the world and names and fomu into accord: Li Hei is teaching Huangdi to become a good ruler. In the Shi· 141m question . the argument is again presented in terms of a dialogue with Huangdi, only here the concern is to transcend the wo rld of forms and align oneself with Heaven and Earth themselves. Huangdi docs not become a bet· ter ruler; he transcends rulership altogether. Liberation and Ascension in me Outer Chapters of the

ZhUtmgzi

An e:uminarion of other works written at roughly the same time :u the ShiWt" will help us place its dualistic argument in COntext. One such work is a dialogue in chapter cleven of the ZhI4Q"gzi between Huangdi and Guang

Chengzi. which contains striking paralJels with the Shiwrn dialogue between Huangdi and Rong Che ng.~ The narrative OptlU with Huangdi as the reign ing Son of Heaven: Huangdi had been established as the Son of Heaven for nineteen yean. Hit; com· manch had. been spread throughout aU under Heaven.15

'"

I have heard thar you have rcached ,he utmost Way. J dare co ask you about the essence of the utmost Way. I wish to grasp the essence of Heaven and Ea«h so .u to aid the five grains and nuftllre the people. I also wish to manage the yin and yang so as to perfea all chat lives. How should I do this~ (4-L8a) Huangdi is attempting to understand. manage. lmd ucili%e the cosmos in order to aid all living things. Guang C hengz:i responds co Huangdi's questio n negatively: What you wish to ask about is the substanCe of things, but what you wish to nunage it; the remnanUi of things. From the rime that you have been ruling all under Heaven, the rain has come without even waiting for the Iji of the d ouds to gather, the leaves of grasses and rrees have fallen without waiting to turn yellow, and the brightness of the su n and moon has increasingly fallen to w.ute. The hean of a fluterer may be: d ever, but undeserving of being told ahQut the utmost Way. (4-111) Huangdi thereupon retreats, renounces all under Heaven, and lives in a shack for three months. He then returns to sec Guang Chengzi, who is sleeping with his face turned south-the direction chat the ruler should face. Huangdi bows and asks a different question:

I have heard that you have rcached the utmost Way. I dare to .uk you about co rreaing the body. How should I do this so thu it will be long.[ived~ (4.ISa) This question Gumg Chengzi accepts:

Good question, Come. I will tell you of the essence of the utmost Way. The essence of the UtmoSt Way is obscure and dark. The extreme point of the utmosc Way is absffUsc: and silent. Do niX look. do not listen. Embrace the spirit so as to be still, and the form will COfTect irsdf. You must be srill and pure. Do not labor your form, do not agitue your essence. Your eye will have nothing that it seu, che ear nothing that it hears. and the hcan nothing char it knows. Your spirit will hold fut [0 you r form, and your form will then live long. (4.18b) The teaching dearly resembles that seen in (exts like the "'Nciye" and t he first pan of the Shiwm: by keeping the spirit within one's form, the form will live long.

He thereupon goes to meet Guang Chengzi:

~.

My undemanding of lhis IUIIu, been gready aided by Roth, !he YeUow Emperor',

Guru: ~s.

Zh"""pi, chap. II, . " Sa) he[eiru,fter ciled in ,be 'an.

Take care of your insides, and block what is outside you, To know tOO much is to be destroyed. For you I will proceed to the height of [he great clarity, going there, going to the source of the yang. For you I will enter the gates of the obscute and dark. go. ing there, going to the source of the yin. Heaven and Earth have managers. yin and yang have repo.itories, Carefully hold fut to your body, and things will become

,,'

T HE ASCBNSION OF T H E S PIRIT

n rong of themsdves. I hold fast to their onenen so as

[0

THB ASCBNSION Of THB S PIRIT

reside in their harmony.

Therefore I have been cultivating my body fOf I,aoo years, and my form has not yet declined. (4.18b-l~)

"7

The argument is paralleled in another d.ia1ogue from chapter eleven o f the Zhwal'!gzi. between Yun Jiang and Hong Meng. Yun Jiang argues that the Ifi of the cosmos is not blending properly and the seasons are hence improperly

Instead of trying to manage [he yin :lind yang. one should accept that they

modulated; he hopes to bring o rder to the world to nourish all living

nunage themselves. One should hold fast to their source (and hence their

things.16 H o ng Meng rejectS him. A narrative much like thar between

oneness, theif harmony), and thus prevent onc's form from declining. H uangdi then boWl again and l:IIy5, -Gumg Chcngzj is Haven: Guang

Humgdi and Guang Chengzi ensues, and the story condudes with H ong

C hcngzi cont in ues:

Mind nurtUring. If you follow you r place and do not act, then things transform of rhemsd.ves. Let f1ll your form and /Tame. Spit OUt your keenness of hearing and brighmC15 of seeing. let your rdarioruhip with things be forgotten. and fully join with the boundless. Liberate your mind and let free your spirit. Be tranquil and v without a JouL The myriad things will sprOUt, but each will return to its root.

Come. I will cd.! you. h, things arc inexhaustible, yet mm all believe they have an end. Its things are without limit, yet men all believe (hey have a limit. He who obtains my way will begin u august and end as a king; he who loses my way will begin by seeing light and end by becoming dirt. Now, everything springs from the earth and then retUrN [0 it. Therefore, I am go ing ( 0 leave you. I will enter the gates of the inexhaustible so u to wander in the fidds of the limidess. r will form a third luminary with the sun and the moon, r will be constant with Heaven and Earch. Near me will be obscurity. far from me there will be darkness. HUm;lns will all die. but I al one will exist! (4.19a-b)

Meng explaining what rea.lly matten:

T hings with fornu sprout and die, hut the adept is able to free h is spirit from th e form and not return. Hong M eng's teaching involves an explicit rejection of refining the form : unlike the 'Neiye,~ which explicitly argued that cultivat ion allowed one to gain keenness of hearing and sight. Hong Meng argues that these should be rejected.

The final move ment of the dialogue prC5ents a h igher form of transcendence. Earlier. the concern h ad been to keep the spirit within the form and thereby

Transcending Heaven and Earth: The ·Yuan you· of the Chuci

achieve a long life. However. Guang Cheng:z:i decides not to remain in the world of forms. The precise mechanism for this mnscendence is not explained. But we are told thar Gumg C hengzi will leave the world in which things rerum to the eanh in death and will instead journey through the limicless. form a mad with t he sun and the moon. and achieve constancy with H eaven and Earth. The text is clearly a critique o f

£onns.

H uangdi's attempt to do

any

attempt to man ipu1ate the world of

ro would have resulted in the destruction o f

The growing popularity of this argument by the late Warring States and early Han is dear from its appearance in a poem dating from roughly the same period.u The poem in question is the hmow "Yuan you· o f the a

(ext

Chua,

mat revolves explicitly around many of the issues discussed in this

chapter. The poem opens with t he poet in disttess: My spirit darted forth suddenly and did nor retu rn; My form withered and decayed, left behind, alone.

the narura! world. G uang Che ngzi advocates instead a regimen of personal culrivation-one that will ulcimately enable the practitioner to transcend the cycles o f decline and decay that characterize the inconstant world between Heaven and Eanh. The strucrure o f the argument is remarkably similar to that in the Shillltl'!. Both are cast as dialogues between Humgdi and an adept, and in both the adept calls for a process of cultiva tion in which one first achieves lo ng life by filling the form with spirit and then reaches a seage of transcendence in which the adept aJcends, beco mes immortal. and joins with Heaven and Earth.

l6. Z&~GlIgtj, chap. n, HY a1/1l/46-41. l 1.

Ibid., 5)-55·

1'. Paul Kroll, among OIhe.., argues that the 1m is roughly contemporary with the H~~illuzi and !lut . he tWO worlu reflect a .imilar way of thinking:' A pbwible lpeculation is flul {he author may luve been one of the many Jirtir~lr.m who gathered during lhe 1)01 KI al Ihe COU" of Liu An" (-Yu,oJl YCMJ: p. IS1). AI I wUl argut; in Chapter 7, however. the H"~JII~lItj II more likely a lornewhal \.oler work, and lhe -Yuan You" , hould be dated to ar· Ikr dUll Kroll polfulate•.

,,'

T HE ASCENSION OF THE SPI RIT

r looked inward with proper resolution, And sought the lource of the proper '1i.lf The concern expresud here is quite similar to [hat seen in such texa as me ~eiye~ and [he first pan of the founh question of me Shiwtn: me fear is that me spirit is leaving (he form. And, again as in these othe r texts, the solurion is to rum inward and cultivate o nc's qi. The firS[ hint that the poet is moving in a direction differem from thar found in texts like the "'Neiye,· however, CUt be seen in the recurrent refer-

ences to the dreariness of the cosmic cycles:

r fur the recurring sequences of the Heavenly sasons, The bright numinousncsi glow. and mOl/es westw:mL (S.la-b) The E:.cr of $tuonai change on which such texts u the "Neiyc- resc their arguments is p rese nted here as Simply a movement toward de.ath. ;lnd the con cern is to transcend it.

THE A SCBNSION O F THB SFiIUT

'"

I preserved the dear puriry of the divine illuminuion; Essential 'Ii entered, and the foul was expelled. (s. 4b) Wang Qiao tells him

to

continue such practices in o rder to incorporate

more refined qi:

Unify the 'Ii, deepen me spirit, And preserve it in the middle of the night. (s.sa) These teachings are reminiscent of Rong Cheng's inirial advice to Huangdi: cultivate one's qi. bring in more spirit. and ma intain it during the night. These practices lead to a refining of the spirit and ult imately allow it to be rdea.sed:

My essence (fing), unmixed and pure, began to strengthen, My substance (wi) mdred and fu$td so as [0 become lOft and straightened,

My spirit (shrll) viral and subd e so as to overflow. rclused. (s.sb)

In searching for how ro do so, t he poet invokes Huangdi and Wang Qiao: I cannot :upireto take Xuan Yuan [i.e., H uangdiJ as my precedenr; r will follow Wang Qiao and play in amusement. (S. 4a)

The poet then ascends. travels upward on a floating cloud, and enten the

Huaogdi is tOO exa.!red a figure for the poet to emubte. Instead, he turns to

palace of Di. H e rhereafter leaves the palace and assembles a p rocession that includes Yushi (the Lord of Rain) and Leigong (the Duke o f Thunder). Using reins and a whip, he leads the procession throughout the cosmos (sb-sb).

Wang Qiao, who, along with C h i Soogzi, wu commonly invoked during th e early Han u a practitioner of techn iques ofliberation and immortality. For enmple, in the ~Qisu,~ chapter eleven o f the HUllinllnzi:

In the Shang ritua.!, the ancestors were called on to ascend to the realm of D i and direct th e nature spirits ro act on bcha.!f o f the living. Here, in this metaphorica.! discussion of something quire similar, the adept performs the

Wang Qiao and Chi Songzi blew, vented, exhaled, and inhal ed. They purged the old and brought in the new. They left behind their forms and expelled knowledge. They embraced the simple and returned to the genuine $0 as to wander in the tubde minu teneu. Above they penetrated to the c1oud.y heaveru. Now we wish to study their Way. We do not ohc:ain their nouris hing of the qi and bringing the spirit to dwdl, but we imitate thei r purging and then inhaling. at the right time crouching. at the right time straightening. That we will be unable to ride the clouds and ascend. to grearne» is dear indeed. JO The poet then begins undergoing seif. culrivuio n-in a fonn quire simi. br ro what we saw above:

a,,,,i, "Yuan you; p.a; hereinafter cited in rhe tut. The fonowing rumbdom of the "Yuan you" have benefited from ,he (lCcdJent tra nsiariolU by David Hawkes (n.. 5<>"1' r>/ tilt 19·

5<>~lh, pp. J\)I-103) and

Paul Kroll ("Yuan you').

30. HlIlIjn4nti, "Qisu,· lJ.9b.

ritual on himself and achieves powers while h e is still alive. The ascending adept becomes more powerful man the spirits in charge of rain and thunder, and h e is in bct able [0 command and d irect t hem. Indeed. rhe adept directs these spirits over the entire cosmos:

r IUrveyed (jllg pllg) rhe Four Wasta, and flew around the Six Boundle» Regions. (s.lIa) As we will see in the next twO chapters. the terms jing and ying came to be comm only used in the ascension literature to discuss the surveying of the cosmos by the ascending adept. As we saw in the Inrroductio n of this book, the same terms were used in th e opening cosmogony of the "Jingshen~ chap. rer o f th e Huainll nzi to describe th e aligning and orien ting o f the cosm os by spirits. Jing also appears in the Shiwen, where it is wed in reference to Wucheng Z hao's taking Heaven and Earth as his a.!ignment (jing). These term s deserve a fuller discussio n here.

THB ASCBNSION OF THB S PIRIT

A.J. noted in the Introduction, when used to describe a survey undertaken before 2n act of construction, the terms have the sense of"aligrt 2nd "orient.· But when used [0 describe figures [raveling over ~ established area, they carry a meaning of ·surveying" or "inspecting: For example, two poems in the Shi refer to war expeditions as "jing ying the four quarters..· 11 The expeditions involve an inspection of the Imd under the Icing's conrml to be sure all is in order. This duaJ meaning of jing ying is, happily, contained in the English "surveying" u well. In the "Yuan you,· the terms are used in the sense of inspecting the area under one's conrrol Leading the lesser spirirs who control natural phenomena, the adept surveys the cosmos. By guiding these spirits u he surveys the universe, the adept helps keep the cosmos in order. H owever, the adept soon transcends even these powers and gndually becomes like those fo rces that first generated the cosmos. Indeed, the adept ultimately reaches back to the point before Heaven and Earth were distinguished:

In the dcptlu bdow [here wu no Earth, in the expa/Ue above there wu no Heaven. Surpusing w~wei for the utmost darity, Becoming a neighbor with Taichu (the Great Beginning). (!la-b) The narrator transcends even Heaven 2nd Earth. If Wucheng Z hao took Heaven 2nd Earth u his alignmenr, the adept here transcends them. Like the pusages from the Zhuangti and the Shiwen, the "Yum you" is a call for ascension, of a liberation and release of the spirit, of a transcendence of this wotld. Jl Conclusion The three texts explored in this chapter playoff similar themes. All three uriliu vocabulary and refer to practices found in the self-cultivation literature like the "Neiye" and ·Xinshu· chapters, and all represent shifts lWlY

11. Sl>i '~os and ~34. p. For a differtnr inr~pret:llion, i « Holvnan, "Immo"ality-Sttking in Early Chimsc Poetry: pp. 105-1. Ho]"man tomenm [hu [he "Yuan you' is 'c1oser 10 philOIOphital Taoism [han i[ is 10 Ihe immortaliry scehu' (p. 1(6). Here, [00, I would reject the dislin(tion belween pracc:ilionen and philolophen. JWI as in early G r«c:e, [he figures who Ire now cbll!-

!led as · philolophe .." were aUo prlC{ilionerl.

THB ASCBNSION Of THB SPUUT

",

from the concerns of those texts. These texts seek to trlnscend the hierarchy of H eaven. Elrth, and man found in texts like the "Neiye: They call for some form of escape from the world of forms and exhibit either a llck of in· tercst in or oven opposition to any anempt to control or manipulate the world. The pracrices they espouse ue to be used not to gain understanding or control over this world but lO transcend it. The one possible exception to this might be the "Yum you· poem, which grants the ldept power over the spirits of rain and thunder. Even here, however, the concern is not so much to impose the adept's will on the world. As implied by the use ofjiJ1gyiJ1g, the adept surveys the cosmos and guides the spirits as they should be guided. In other words, the ldept is not a humln manipulating the spirits who control nltura! phenomena. nor is he l prlctitioner of self-cultintion tech· niques who directly Vins control over nltural phenomenl. Instead, he surveys the cosmos and hel ps keep it in order-a sute akin to Wucheng Z hlo's taking Heaven and Elnh as his llignmenc. Therelfter, the adept even transcends this stOlte and returns to the states before H eaven lnd Euth Clme into being. All these texts enjoin the ldept to reverse [he process of generation in an implicit cosmogony: Helven and Earth were generated from an essence or gren beginning.. and Heaven and Elrth then gave birth to the my riad formed things. Heaven and Earth do not die, but the formed things do. Each of these teXfS then telches how humans C2n dispense with their form lnd, joining Heaven and Earth, traverse the cosmos and lchieve immortality. With the "Yum you: the adept is able to retreat yet further-to the stage before Heaven and Euth were even formed.. T he cosmologies ne thus in some ways complrable to mlny of lnalyzed in Chapter 4, but the ngument is w.:en a step further. In the "Bensheng" chapter of the Liimi ,hunqiu, for enmple, me ruler is called on to become like his anceslOr Heaven and to mainuin thlt ancestor's order; here, an earlier ancestor is posited, and the goal is to tT2f\scend the world of forms l ltoge ther. T he key move in these texts is to build on elrlier cosmologicll and self· cultivation texts, bur to posit l potential dualism berween the form and the .pirit. If texts like the HXinshu" chlprers of the GUIlJ1zi were arguing for a monistic cosmology in which one could become l spirit while remaining fully within the limitations of the humln form, the concern in these texts is to diatinguiJh the two and to liberOlte the Ipirit from the body.

mose

THE ASCENSION OF T HE SPIRIT

THe ASCHNSION OF THE SP IRIT

And, perhaps most significant, these texu ;,He not written in the form of advice on rulership. Indeed, the '"Yuan You· is not written ro a king at a1l; the other rwo, while addressed to kings, advise the ruler ro transcend the world of forms and ro give up the attempt ro gain power over that world. T hus, here we get one of our first glimpses at the use of divinization tech· niques to claim autonomy from the existing order. This is not unlike what we find in ancient Greece, where, as I mentioned in Chapter 1, divinizarion claims became increasingly associated with movements that rejected the po. lis. In Greece divinization practices were also extended into narratives of as· cension. An example would be the narrative ofrhe soul in Plaro's Phlltarus,ll which r read as a development of the same claims discussed in Chapter 2. reo g.arding the divinity of man's soul. PlatO compares the soul ro a charioteer with a p;tir of winged horses. The horses and charioteers of the gods are purely good, bur the charioteers of human souls h.ave o nly one noble horse- rhe other is lowly.l-4 As Pbto describes the ascension:

with difficulty; for the horse of evil nature weigJu che chariot down, making it heavy and pulling toward the earth the charioceer whose horse is not well tr:tined. JIi

The natural function of the wing is to soar upwards and carry chac which is heavy up to the place where dwdls che race of the gods. More chan any ocher thing that pt:rr:tins to the body it parrakes of me nature of che divine. But the divine beaUty, wisdom, goodness, and all such qualiries; by these then the wings of the soul are nourished and grow, but by the opposite qualities. such as vileness and evil, they are wasted and destroyed. Now the great leader in heaven. Zeus, driving a winged char· iot, goes first, arranging all things and cadng for all things. He is followed by an army of gods and spirits, arrayed in deven squadrons.1S I n this ascension ro the highest levels of the cosmos, Zeus, the highest god, Iuds the procession, followed by .an array of other gods and spirits. And hum.ans follow as well. The wings of human souls are the most divine, .and they therefore tend to ascend with the gods. But the lesser p;trts of the hu· man soul pull it back down. The higher the procession goes, t he more dim· culry those wirh less cultivated souls have: They proceed steeply upward to the tOp of the vault of heaven, whes,e the chariots of the gods. whose wdl matched ho rses obey the r~in, advance easily, but th~ others

lJ. My understanding of rhe Ph...drUJ nmalive hu been gready hdped by the inJighcfu] analYJis of Bruce Lincoln, in Tb.oriting M}rh, pp. '5' - 59. )4. Plato. Ph..nlru •• l46.a-b. lS, Ibid., a46c1-41a; rTanJlarion by Harold North Fowkr from Plalo. Eurh)1lhro. Apo/OO' Criro, PIIo
"3

Finilly. t he procession goes beyond the heavens and re;tches the level of truth, absolute justice, and knowledge. I? The gods are ;tble to re;tch this highest level, as are the best of the human souls. The others. however, f.lil ;tnd fall back to C2rrh-some having glimpsed the highest level. others hav· ing not seen it at all. 33 These souls fall back to earth .and are reborn in ;t new body. The resulting humans are uranged in a hie rarchy based on how much of the world of fruth e:;tch soul saw during its ascension: Th~

soul that has seen the most shall enrer into the birth of a man who is to be a philo.sopher or a lover of beauty . .. and the second soul inro that of a lawful king or a warlike ruler, and the thitd into that of a politician or a man ofbu.siness or a finan· cier, th~ fourth into that of a hard.wotking gymnast or one who will be concerned with the: cure of the body, and th~ fifth will leu! the life of a prophet or someone who conducts mystic rites: to the sixth a poet at som~ other imitative artist will be united, to the seventh, a craftsman or a husbandman. to th~ eighth. a sophist or a J9 demagogu~, to the ninth. a t)'Tant. As one might expect from a follower of Empedocles, the philosopher IS pbced ar the he;td of the hierarchy followed by rulers and religious special· ists and then the rest of sociery.40 Plato is rhus claiming ro have access to a divine status unattainable through the sacrificial system of the polis. As in the material from euly C hina discussed in this ch;tpter, ascension represents a radicalization of divinization claims. Inste;td, therefore, of seeing these early Chinese texts as ;t survival of an earlier sh;tmanism, I would argue that these claims for ascension arose only in rhe third .and second cenmries HC for specific historical reasons. They emerged only ;tfter divinization practices h;td developed. The ascension lit· enture prolifented by ;tppropriacing and r;tdicalizing these diviniz.ation practices in order to assert the abiliry of individuals to t ranscend their roles, the political order. ;tnd the world of forms itself. The same argument would hold as well for the emergence of ascension literature in Greece :It roughly the same time. In both cases, this literature ;lTose out of a radicalization of )6. PLno, PJ..r,:d,ul, l47b-C: (Tarn. from Fowkr. p. 415. J1. Placo. Ph..nlrul. Z41d-c. l8.lbid .• 14~ -b. 39. Ibid" z4ad-e; nanl. from Fowler. p. 419. 40. ~e LbICoIn, 'f'hn,, /!i"1 Mflh •.pp. ISJ - ,6.

THB ASCBNSION OF THB SP I RIT

earlier self-divinization practices, which themselves arose as a reaction to the arts of the sacrilicial and divination specialistS of the day. As we shall see in the next twO chaptets, such claims of ascension proliferated dramatically. I will trace how the debates concerning the relationship of the spirit to the form and the degrees of power that the .adept can .and should exercise over things developed in the early imperi.al period.

A theocracy of spirits

6

Theism, Theomorphism, and Alchemy in the Qin and Early Han Empires

In Z IB BC, the First Emperor, in the tweno/-ninrh ye"r of his reign, had an inscription carved on Mount Zhifu. h read in part: The bright potency of the August Thmch (Di) aligns (jing) and arranges (Ii) all within the universe. 1 The Qin ruler, having entitled himulfhucmgdi (lit. ·"ugust god"), notes that he has aligned the universe "nd given it patterns to foUow. As we saw in Ch.apter 'h the term jing was widely utilized ro describe both the spontaneously generated alignment of the cosmos and, in the ascension literature, an adept's surveying of the cosmos. H ere, the cwm is that the rule r himself. now c.aIled a Oi, has person.aIly aligned the cosmos. . Although such st.atemenrs would be ch"racterized in the early Han as excessively boastful, the works of this period accepted, and frequently iterated, the notion that particular figures h.ave power over the natural world. They disagreed, however, over the means of ac hieving such powers and the proper moments for using them. Among the questions debated we re How do naru· ral processes work? To what extent should humans manipuure these processes? And if manipulation is acceptable, how can it be accomplished, and under what circumstances is it legitimate? In this chapter, I sketch the

I.

Shift. "Qln Shlhuallg be:nJI; 6.~ .. ~ .

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A THEOCRACY O F SPIRITS

A THEOCRACY OF SPIRITS

development of this debate in the Qin ;md the early Han and an21yu the issues of concern. I focus on the questions of what cults were supporced by the e.trly imperial SLues, what claims were made concerning the powers of the rulers over the natural and the human worlds. and why seven.! figures at court turned to correlative models during this period. Inrim:ne1y related to these questions. I will argue, was the issue of human mortality. Both the First Emperor and Emperor Wu of the Han employed specialistS to help them overcome human limitations and 2chieve a bodily

the first legendary rulers of Rome: Romulus. the exemplar of violent aggressiveness (ce/erita5), and Numa, the model of sacerdoral powers (grallita5).l Dumizil's comparative approach consisted of analyzing the appea.rances of this dualism in various texts in different Indo-European traditions. However. Dumizil's emphasis on studying these permutations synchronically led [0 an unfortunate tendency on his part to chart appearances of a given structure, in this case a diarchical system of kingship. Indeed, when he mentions the studies of Granet in the conclusion to his work, he discusses nor the complex analyses of narratives of rulership in Danstj tt legtndcj but the analyses of yin and yang in La pendt chinojJt. 4 For Dume:zil. the dualistic structure of kingship in early Indo-European societies functioned as a complementary (or comrastive) pair in the same way thar yin and yang did in early Chinese thought. The comparison is unfortunate. for many of the ideas in Granet's studies of narratives in Dansts u legrndej would have been f.tr more useful ro a comparative discussion of kingship.5 The problem with Dumhil's approach is that he tends to focus on the final structure of kingship rather than on the emergence of that structure, or. to PUt this another way. he tends to focus not on the tensions (hat led to a cerrain presentation of kingship in a particular narratille but on the final, synchronic structure itself. This approach derives in large part from his contention that this structure is traceable to the culture of the early Indo.Europea.ns. Dumizil argued that the early Indo-European community had an ideology based on a tripartite structure of sovereignty (itself divided into the dualism mentioned above), the warrior function. and the function of fecundity. His comparative method is thus focused on discovering this structure in various Indo-European narratives, discolleries that would then serve to validate his basic contention. Whatever the truth of Dumezil's argument concerning the IndoEuropean community,6 his method is not particularly helpful for comparative research. In the case of early China, for example. the approach would lead only ro a comparison based on the negative claim that no such structure

ascension to the heavens. Many of the themes anotlyzed in the previous chapter reappear during this period, but in a very different fonn. I will cry to disenu.ngle che competing cosmologies of the time and the various c!;..ims concerning human potency. In order [0 situate this argument, I begin by discussing the anthropological literature on divine kingship and sacrifice-a literature in which China, again because of the work of Marcel Granet, holds an important place.

Kingship and Sacrifice: From Graner ro Dumezil and

Back Again Through Sahlins As we saw in Chapter 4, Granet's analyses of China strongly influenced the anthropologicalliterarure on cosmological thinking. The same is true of the anthropological literature on dilline kingship. Georges Dumhil, one of Graner's students and a leader in the study of kingship. dellO[ed his life to the srudy of Indo-European materials. but Dumezil explicidy built on Graner's work in his analyses. Dumezil. however, turned away from the tIIolutionary model Granet fallored and [Oward a study of the generation of permutations from a gillen scructural paradigm. Moreover, his explicit goal was to prollide a framework for comparative analysis. His attempt is worth following. both [0 follow the insights his approach has yielded as well as to note the losses. In his classic study of kingship, Mitra· Varuna: mai 5ur dtux rtprimllationJ indo~uropitnnej de la jouveraintt~. Dumezil argued. within a comparative framework, for (he existence in Indo-European texts of a basic duwm in conce:pcs of sovereignty: a passive, sacerdotal form of kingship, and an active. militaristic form? It is in these: terms. for example, that he analyzed twO of

2. Dum~ dtdicafe5 fm: book jointly to Granel and Marcel Mauss, and in em: prebce to the recond edition, he empha.sized hil ddK to Graner; fCC Mif.~·Vdrwl'kl, pp. 11-14. DunlhiJ aUo dilcwKllome of Graner'I work in hia (ondusion, a poim 10 which I will rerUrll below.

"7

1. Ibid., pp. 47-SS· 4. Ibid .. pp. 17s-8e. s. For a discw.ion ofGr:lJler'. discussion of mythical n.uratives in early China. see dtap. 1 of my Th "mlriv"itn(t ojCrt",ion. 6. For erlfiquu of DumnJ, I t t LiMoln. Dt~rb. W~r. ~II
,,'

/I.

A T H EOC RACY OF SPI RIT S

THBOCRII.CY OF SP IRITS

existed in early China. Since none of the narratives characterize the social order in terms of a diarchical kingship (or, for that marter, a more general tripartite structure), one could Sly only rhlt me early Chinese n:.l.rrarives do not work in terms of t he structure that Dumezil claimed to find in the IndoEuropean materials.

Among che recent critiques of Dume:.:il's arguments, Marsh:ill Sahlins's attempt to shift the discussion aw:.l.Y from a Dumi'ziIian emphasis on synch ronic structures and toward a generative app roach provides. a more promising comparative method. Of particular interest to the present study is Sahlins's discussion of the ~srr
ucives and rituals that present m e scare as having emerged from contact between a peaceful, indigenous populace and a transgressive outsider. The consequence of this contact is the emergence of a th ird term, sovereignry, which is itself dualistic and consists of peaceful and warlike elements. Instead, then, of focusing o n a static system, this model em phasizes a diarchical structure of kingship as the result of an earlier conflict. The pennutations found in different narratives ITom disp2rate culrures ue men analyzed as the working OUt of various combinations of these dualistic forces, a process characterized by almost endless d egrees of complexity. Like Dumezil, Sahlins an.uyus the legends concerning t he creation of the Roman scate. And as d id Dumezil, Sahlins focuses on the accounts (primarily ITom Livy, Pluc:arch, and Dionysius of Helicarnassus) that portray the founding of Rome as a union between the followers of Romulus on the one 8 hand and the Sabines on the other. Dumezi!, reading this material in terms of his tripartite structure, argued that we should see here the common IndoEuropean theme of a wu between the functions, with sovereignry (Romulus) and the warrior function (his followers) paired against t he function of fecundity (rh e Sabines).9 Sahlins, in COntrast, reads rh e material in generative tenns as a narration of me emergence of the Stare. The wa r men represents the combining of the powers of transgressive, military violence with the fecundity of the Sabines,

• , . Siliinl, Ilk",d! ~f Hi!t~rJ' pp. 7]-10). 8. See. e.g .• Plutarch. Liva. "Romulus: 14-~1. 9. Dumizil. God! pf Jht "",inot N",thmr". p. 24. Dwnhil disclllUl [he accoum in compari· Ion with dle None my.:h of [he war between tile £Sir (who. he d..inl" repruem the Brit twO functions) and the Yanir (represeming the third): ICe ibid .. pp. )-15.

'"

and it is out of th is combination mat Roman kingship emerges. IO Moreover, Sahlins argues, the reason that Roman kingship is divided into the dualism explored by Dumezil is precisely because it is posed as emerging ITom this combination of violence and fertility. Thus. rh e first instantiation of this dualism is seen in twO early rulers of Rome. the same two figures analyzed by Dumb:il as representing the dualism onndo-European sovereignty: Romulus rby nature a lover of war.~ as Plutarch put it) and Nwna. himself a Sabine. who turns away ITom the militancy of Romulus' rule and esc.blishes the religious order and organizes society and the calendar. I I As Sahlins puts it: Numa. Romulus', successor, weans Rome from war md founds t he priesthood md cult. means of civic order. Numa'$ refornu represent the more general popular inter· est which he, as member of the indigenous people, is disposed to incarnate. Thereafter, the Larin kingship will altema[e between ,duita! and gr
10. Sahlinl. hl.lrnl. ~fHiflo'1. pp. 84-91. II. For rh~ rderencet (0 Romulw and Numo. ICe Plwl~rc"'! Livtl, "Romu!w: 14.1: and "Nnma: ).). 8-14. 17-18. I~. Sahlin. "I.J,w, ojHij/o,], p. 91. I). For Fiji, I « ibid .. pp. 14-89. g4-loa; and for Hawaii, pp. 91- 94.

.,0

A THEOCRACY OF SPIRITS

The crucial point for the comparison is the role discontinuity plays in Polynuian cosmologies. As discussed in Chapter 4. Sahlins argues that Polynesian sacrificial systems emphasize the need to introduce discontinuity in order to achieve a life for humanity: Polyne$ians were ever and again cnpged with the divine in a curious co mbination of submission and opposition whose object" WlU to rrm,fer to rhemsdves the life that the gods originally pones,. continue [0 detain, and alone can bestow. By luccessive riruili of lupplicarion and expropriation. rhegod is invited iOlo the humalfdonuin. to givcir life, and then barmhed thar mankind may take possession of the divi ne benefits. 14

Sahlins ugues that the ·stranger king" is utilized in Polynesian n:l.rrarjves o f the origin of the state to account for the introduction of discontinuity from outside. This also explains for Sahlins the existence of human sacrifice in Hawaii: [he concern again is to imroduce discontinuity. [0 separate the human &om me divine. wPrerogative of the king. human sacrifice is whar puts me god at a distance and allows mankind to inherit the earth.. , , So the temples consecrated in Hawaii by human sacrifice. separating the 'sacred' (huvenly) from the 'secular' (earthly) or tabu (k
-NaliO'd' 1'hi"s,. 1'. 14. ofHi"o'J. p. "S. 16. SahliN, How 'NQriwl' Think, p. ~s.

IS. SUUins. IJI....J,

I? Gunet, however • •tad Chin~$C lurr.tiVCI as ~video~e of an a(t(':rJ him'lr\c::al evolution Tilher dun as laler annnl'u 10 aplaiolhe 11.:IUlre of lhe eomempor;uy 'I~e.

A THBOCIlACY OF SPIRITS

.,.

Can these discussions of divine kingship narratilles help us understand the tensions surrounding the formation of me Chinese empire? 1 hope to show that they can. The narratives of the founding of the Roman state OUtlined abolle derive from Plutarch-a Greek living under Roman imperial rule. I suspect Plutarch intended to draw an unflattering parallel between me founding of rhe original Roman state and the founding of me Roman empire during the first century &C. Plutarch uplicitly describes Caesar's assassination as a sacrifice. II Plutarch may be drawing a p.1ra11el here wim Romulus, the mythological transgressor who created the original state. According to Plutarch, both Romulus and Caesar were sacrificed by senators 1g who feared their growing usurpation of the Senate's power. Just as the state was successfully consolidated only after the sacrifice of Romulus, so was empire consolidated by Augustus only after me duth of Caesar: it took a transgressor like Caesar to begin the autocracy. but. by the same token, he was tOO rnnsgressive to consolidate a new form of gOllemment. That job went inste.ad (0 Augusrus, the · second Caesar...lO And, although Plutarch draws a comparison between Caesar and Romulus, he makes it dea r that Augustus was not quite Numa: [Janu$) WO has a temple at Rome with double doou, whkh they call the gates of war; for the temple alwaY$ $rands open in tima of war, but u d oKd when pe.ace has come. The [atler WI5 a difficult maner, and ir rardy happened. since the realm wu alwaY$ engaged in some war, 15 its incrcuing size brought it into colluion with rhe barbarous natiON which encompu$cd it round about. But in the ti me of Augustus Caesar it wu dosed, after he had overthrown Antony.... During the reign of Numa. however. it was nor secn open for a single day, bur remained shur for the Ii~e of forty-three yt21'$ together, 10 complete and universal was the cessation of W.lIT. For not only was the Roman people sofccned and charmed by rhe righteousness and mildness of [heir king. bur also the cities round about. as if some cooling breeze or salubriow wind were wafted upon them from Rome, began to ClI:perience

18. Plutarch, U"tl. "c-r; 6S.6. 1!t).lbid., "Romulus; :l1.S-6 :10. Ibid., "Numa; lSI", This may be IN: source of Heger. &mow argument dUI. in Ro",~, empire wu instituled only after il' inU:~lor, Cauar. wu ucrihced . A1lhough Brw:m. Cicero, and Cauim felt llut tt", usu.sinalion would Iud to the reinstalement of tN: Rtpublie, hiltory, according 10 Hegel, prOYed them wrong: "Buc it became immediatciy manifen Ihat ouly • • Ingle wU] could guide the Roman Siale, and now the Romani wert compelled 10 :adopt d1.:l1 opInion! .ioce io all periods of the world a polilical revolulion iI JaoCiioned in men's opinion., when it repe'" illdf' (Hlgd, PIlIJo"'p/I] ojHillot'], p. JII).

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A THEOCRACY OF SPIR I TS

A THEOCRACY OF SPIRITS

change of temper, and all of them were filled with longing desire to have good government, to be u peace, to till the u,nh. to rear their children in quiet, and [0 worship the gods,ll

And the more recent analyses of Plutarch's narrative discussed above 25 were certainly writren with such concerns in mind as weU. Sahlins develops his argument about the stranger-king not simply to draw a comparison between the Roman and the Polynesian narratives but also to discuss how these themes played out historically in Polynesia. Sahlins reads [he great mid-nineteenth-cenrury Fijian wa r in rerms of an interplay between the claims of sacerdotal kingship and those of militanr kingship.26 Sahlins's move here is ro work out the cultural tensions surrounding nOtions of kingship and the n analyze the historical implications of the way these competing claims play out. Valerio VaJeri, using a similar methodology, craces how such tensions played out in Hawaii when Kamehameha conquered other l1 warring chiefdoms and went on to form a unitary state. All these analyses focus on the crucial historical tensions surrounding [he emergence of empire-an approach far more powerful than an emphasis on permutations of a synchronic Structure. In [his form, the themes are even applicable co a discussion of [he rue of empire in early Greece-a culrure that Dumezil always had difficulty placing within his framework. In early Greek historiography, empire (arche) is often presenred in terms of a dialectic between human and divine powers. Indeed, empire and hubris were commonly linked by the Greek historians, who portrayed empire as a tr.lnsgression of the proper order of the gods, the Gruks, or the traditions of the ciey-states.13 Thucydides in his account of [he Peloponnesian War. for example, presents empire as a human act of hubris against [he ciey-states' traditional arrangements with the gods. In contrast to the Spartans, the Athenians are radical innovators, supporting rebellions and attempting IO create an empire. Thucydides frequendy quotes critiques of the hubris of the

:I.

Like NWU2, Augustus brought peace. Bur it was nor a peace comparable

to

that of the reign ofNwna, who, through his Hdcllorion to religion,..<.2 brought the populace back to a proper worship of the gods. But char which was the end and aim of Numa', government, namely. the continu-

ance of peace :lnd friendship between Rome and other nuians, straighrwa.y vanished from the earth with him. After his death the double doors of the temple which he had kept continuously dosed, as ifhe really had war caged and confined there, were [hrown wide open, and Italy w:u filled with [he blood of [he sbin. ThlU not even for a little time did the beautilUl edifice of justice which he had reared remain standing.

because it lacked the cement of education. "What, then: some say, -was not Rome advanced and bettered by her warsr That is a question which will need a long answer, if! am to satisfy men who hold that betterment consists in wealth, luxury, and empire. rather than in safery, gendeness, and thar independence which ill arrended by righteowness. n The moral is clear: Augusrus may have succeeded in bringing peace. as had Numa, but Augusrus' peace was a lesser peace-an autocratic and imperi.a1 one. Plutarch clearly favored a return to what he envisioned as a traditional form of morality, religiosiey, and statehood, in which humans engaged in peaceful agriculture and displayed proper reverence for the gods. In other words, he is overtly critical of aspeCts of the Roman empire and is calling for a ruler like Numa. Although Plutarch never wrote a biography of Augustus, one swpectS that he strongly opposed the divinizatiOn of rulership thac accompanied Augustw' consolidation of the emperorship.2i In short, Plutarch's narrative of the origin of the state in Rome was wrirren, I would argue, wi[/} the formation of the Roman empire in mind.

~l. Plutarch. U ... , -NllflU," 10.1-J; traIlS. Perrio, pp. 37)-15. 11. Plutarch. UVt:J, "Numa: n.r, tranl. Perrin. p. )8}. 13. Plutarch, LiVt:J, "Lycurgus and Nwna: 4.6- 7: [Taru. Perrin. p. )99. ~. On the divinintion of the Roman emperor•. l « Taylor. Th Divi~ilJ pf!he Rp"",~ Em· pm>r; and PoUini. -Man Or God.- Also hdpful are Weinuock. DivIIJ}w!ioJ: Yaven;.}w!iuJ CAt· ... r
'll

15. Bruce Lincoln ugues tfu1 Dumez;!'s :onalysis in Mirra·Va,.."... the flut editioo of whil;h was published in '9'+0. was in part written as ~ cri1ique of t he Gennan empire and suppon: foe Mw.!oluli·s form offas.cism. According to Lincoln, if Rome for Durnhil represents a proper ordering of Romulus ~nd NWlIa. ,t/m:r
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A THEOCRACY OF SPIRI T S

A THEOCRACY O F SPIIUTS

Athenians and argues thar ultimately Athens will overreach in resources and be destroyed. Early in the work. for example, the Corinthians, while trying to convince Sparta to join the war againsc the Athenians, describe the Athenian empire in precisely these terms:

Resigned to the inevitable destruction of the gods. the Athenians can none· theless go down knowing they have created t he greaten empire in hisfO!}' up to that point. What is powerful in this speech and, indeed, powerful in Thucydides' narrative in general is mat the Athenian empire is consinentiy presented as herojc but, as an effort t hat runs counter fO the rraditional arrangement of t he city·states, doomed. On,e Athens beume an empire, T hucydides is plying. it was doomed. Thucydides associates empire with traflsgressive(in' novation and therefore with hubris. For Thucydides. t he history of an em·

An Achenian is alwaYI an innovator. quick to fonn a resolution and quick u carry. ing it our. You [the Spanansl. on [he other hand, are good u keeping things as they are; you never originate an idea. and your action tends [0 '£Op ,hon of its aim. Then again, A[henian daring will outrun itl own resourccs; they will r'3ke ridtl against rheir better judgment. and still, in the midst of danger, remain confident.29 The very Irrengrh of the Athenians will ultimately lead to their defear: as innova.tors and originators. they will inevitably transgress their limiu and bring descruction on t hemselves. This linkage of empire and tranlgreuive innovation recurs throughout t he narrative. For example. Pericles notes this in his famous funer:L! orarion: "I shall begin by speaking of our ancesfOTS.... They certainly deserve our praise. Even more so do our fathers deserve it. For to me inheritance that they had received they added all the empire we have now, and it was not without blood and toil thar they handed it down to us of the present genera. tion."30 Empire was a recent crearion. an addition to the inheritance from earlier generationl of Athenians. Later, when the war was going badly for the Amenians, Pericles offers a funher reflection on t his creation: "Your empire is now like a tyranny: it may have been wrong fO rake it; it is cenainly wrong to let it gO.-)1 In T hucydides' account, Pericles admits that this additio n of empire to the ancestral heritage inrroduced a dange row element infO the culture. But it is right to endure with resignation whu the gods send. and £0 face one's enemics with 'OUtage. ... The re.uon why Athcm has me gre;tte:st name in all the wodd is ba:auu she h.u never given in to adversity. but has spent more life and 1.1' bour in warfare than any other nate. thus winning [he greatdt powt:r that has tvet Qisred in hislOry, such a power that will be remembered fo rever by posterity, tven if now (sin, e all things are born to decay) there Ihould come a tirm: when we were forced co yidd.

.

"

19. Thucydide., P,lcpon"fsi"" W", 1.10; franl. Warner, 10. Thucydides, a.)6; tran •. Warner, pp. 144-45.

)1. Th u.cydi
pp. 7S-,6.

r-

pire can only be a tragedy. ~ This badtground may help to explain Alexander's progreS5ive moves towa rd deification as he established his empire:)) if empire ,onrravenes the gods, then only a god ,an successfully establish an empire. Initially, Alexan· der's c!ainu of divine attributes were based on the figure of H eracles. whom he claimed as an an,es tor,H and who was o ne of the few mortals said to have joined the gods on Olympus. During the ,am paign in India. Alexander decided to s.;ale the Rock of Aornas and capture it beause, according to legend, H eracles had fa.iled in a similar atte mpt. By capturing the Rock. Alexander was claiming to have surpassed even the great wa rrior Herades. n Alexander similarly saw himself in competition with Dionysus and claimed t hat he had penetrated furthet into India than had the gOO.* But the most significant aCt occurred in 3"14 IIC, when the G reek stares 11 began debating whether to worship Alexander with divine honors. By at leasr )2.) IIC. several Greek states were worshipping Alexander as a living

)}. For recent diKunions of the issue of Alaandcr', dei~rion. '" SotWOJth, '"The 0;. rinity of Alcxarukr: in idem, (A"'i"W"..d Empirr. pp. a,S-9Q; and Fredriclumeyer, "Thr« NOles on Alennder'. o..i6cuion." ) 4 . Plutarch. Liffl, "Alaander: 1.•• 3S. Oiodorw 17.'S; and Arrian, AllllksiJ, 4.11, 30; S~6. )6. Arrian, A""ksiJ. S.1 37. Plutarch, Mor..!;", 1'9<. There is a Ia~ scholarly debate on whether AIu:ondcr re· quUted that the Gr«k '[;Ites give him diYine honor, 0 . Whelhe. the Hates did.o in order to COUrt Alexander. See HamUlon. Aba..Jtrlht Grt<>l, pp. 1)8-41; and Frcdriclunlqu, 'Thre< NOlU OR Aluander'l o..ifICalion: pp. l-S. BOlh '" the evidtnce as indicaling rn:.r Alexan' der did indeed .equest il. As Bo,wonh has argued. Ihe .,.idence uvealJ Jl lull lhal "the en· acllnelll of divine honoun w;u well known to be somerhing die king greatly duired" (Co",!.'11 ~nJ Emrirr, p. aU).

",

A THBOCII.ACY OF SPIJUTS

A T HEOCRACY OF SP II\lT S

god.M Empire was successfully creared. and it was Cfe2ced by a god: empire and deification developed togemer. [Alexander's] progress wu complete. Beginning u a Heradid and descendant of herOef. he had become son oruu. and competitor wit h [he heroes. Finally he had be· come a god manifest on eanh, (0 be honoured with all the appurtenances of cult. The precedent for (he wonrup of a living man wu firmly established. and c:ulrl were offered to his Successon with gturer tlequency :lnd magnificence.)9

Similar themes of deification played out in the emergen~ of empire in early China as welL where we see the emergence, for the first rime (as f.u u

we know) in Chinese history. of claims by the ruler himself to be a god. The

me

emergence of imperial rule in early Chin:a coincided with rise of a new type of theomorphic claim. Building on the diviniucion and ascension licel'2ture, although accepting a largely theistic cosmos and a ritual order Insed on 5acrifice, the Qin riNal sYStem inllolved an appropriation of dilline powersthe lIery wues that Granet discussed. As we halle seen, comparable claims accompanied the rise of centralized states and empires in numeroU5 areas. But the concern :lmong those attempting to cl:lim dilline kingship in China was not, as Sahlins has discussed for Polynesi:l, to sacrifice the gods and appropriate the land; rather, the goal was to ascend to the he:lllens and be rransformed into a god. The rat of this ch:opter utempcs to answer the questions How and why were such claims uticulated! Who opposed these cl:oinu~ :ond Whu were the historical ramific:ltions of the ways the ensuing conflicts developed! In shorr, whu were the crucial tensions surrounding the for muion of empire in early Chin:l! Com pedng Cosmologies in the Qin and Early H an Those who :oppro:och e:orly Chinese thought historically tend to associate the emergence of correlative thinking in the late Warring St:otes and e:orly Han with the rise of cenrralized States concerned with building ideological systems different from the He:ollen-bued ideology of the Zhou. In Chapters 2. and 4 , I :lrgue that. to the conrr:lry, monistic cosmologies w.:re formulated by figu res opposed to the ritual specialists employed u the dominant courts of the time. and that such cosmologies failed to gain signific:onr backing for some time. An example is the Luihi chunqiu. Once Ui Buwei fell from power, )S. Frrdricks~r, -rhrce Notu on Aku.nder', lXiHc:adon: p. S. )9. BoIWGrlh, Co"'i~tJl ,,,.j

Empi,t, p. 190·

/

\ 37

the Qin court ignored such ideas, as did the early Han emperors._M Lric cosmologies, fa r from being the imperial ideology. we re used to oppose the cosmology dominant at the imperial court. The views that dominated the Q in and early Han courts were indeed fa r removed from the H e:ollen-bued system of the Zhou, but they we re also litde influenced by correlative systems of thought. I nstad. e:oriy imperi.al ideology continued to be bued on a theistic system, wherein natural phenomena were seen as gOllerned by distinct, active deities. At the head of this celesti.al hierarchy was D~ and below him we re arrayed various spirirs, e:och with its own domain of power. Riru:ol specialists continued to be employed to use forms of dillination or sac rifice to determine, influence, or even conttol the spirits of each domain. Thus, for example, Sir=. Qi:on clainu that Emperor Wen (r. 179-157 Be), after noting the growing prosperiry of the empire, suted: "With my lack of virrue, how could I rake credit fo r th'is! It is a gift ofShangdi and all the spirits...4CI H e the reupon incre:osed the sacrifices to the spiri ts. Wh:oreller the lieracity of this account, such s[:otements are nonetheless telling of early H an political rhetoric: one could claim to be a humble ruler by crediting one's successes to the di and s~n and by proclaiming one's indebtedness to them through copious sacrifices :lnd ritual obeisance. In suting thar such a cosmology was predominant, however, I in no w:ly mean to imply thar all the arly emperors expressed the type of humility tow:ord the s~" that Sima Qian asc ribe.s to Emperor Wen. To the contrary. the predomin:once of this cosmology meant that ma ny of the tensions surrounding the ideological cbims of the e:orly emperors revolved around the relationship between the emperors and the spiriu. Although humility was one possible rhetorical posrure, it was h:ordly the only one. In the remainder of this ch:opter, I attempt to reconstruct the sacrifices of the euly emperors and the specialiSts they hired in order to trace these v:orying claims over the course of the c:orly imperial era. Emperors and Gods in the E:orly I mperial Courts When Qin crueed the first imperial st2te in :1.2. 1 BC, it attempted to forge an imperial ideology of unification. The most important 5acrifices we re offered at the Qin cult center of Yong [0 the four gods-the white. green, yellow, 40. Ship (herrlnaf'trr citw in Ihr l U I ). "Fengtlun .hu," d

.IISI.

",

A T U BOC RA C Y OF SPIR I TS

/l. THBOCR/l. C Y Of SPIR IT S

and red di (Shiji. "Fengshan shu!~ :l8.m6). T he first of these sacrifices had been insrirurcd in 771 Ie, when the Zhou coun: recognized Duke Xiang of Qin as a feudal lord. Since [he surt of Qin was in the fiat west, Duke Xiang created an "alar of the west," at which sacrifices were made (0 the white ai, [he god of t he west rFengshan shu," :18.13s8). Over the next several ccnruries. Qin introduced sacrifices to the gods of the other three directions as weUpresumably as 2 ,!.tim (0 prominence as Zhou power wmcd ("Fengslun shu," :18.1]60. 1364). Not only did Qin maintain these sacrifices. however. but it also attempted [0 co-opt (he significant cults of each region in [he empire. According (0 Sima Qian:

It is within mis context rhat we see a flowe ring o f interest ar the imperial court in techniques to gain immortaliry,41 u well as t he rise to prominence of those specialists th.at Sima Qian called jangJhi, or murers of formulas.~J The Ja ngshi claimed to possess formulas that enabled them to contact and summon spirits and to thereby secure dilline support. One of the major commissions gillen these figures by me Firsr Empero r wu to seek OUt uanscendents who had achieved long life and to find drugs thar would nuke the emperor immortal (Shiji, "Qin Shihuang benji: 6.Z4S, ~s~. 1SS, 16]). These searches became associated with the attempt to become a True Man (then ten). Sima Qian rcconscrucu 2 discussion between the JangJhi Lu Sheng and the Fil'$t Emperor:

When Qin united all under heaven, (the first emperor) commanded [hat [he offeringJ frequencly performed by the officials of aacrifice [0 Heaven. Eanh, the famous mountains, the gru.t rivers, the ghom, and the spiritS be obtained :lIld placed in Ofder. (~Fengshan shu,~ ~.[J71)

Lu Sheng told the First Emperor, 1 and others have searched for lhi planrs. 'trange medicines, and transcendents. but we halle nor found them. Strange creatures have prevented us. The fonnulas say [hat a human ruler n\USt move secredy, at the appropriate time. in order [0 avoid the eIIU ghosta. If the evil ghOstS are alloided, then the levd ofT rue Man can be arrained. If the minurers know where the ruler resides, then harm will come to his diYinity (shell). A True Man enters water wi[hout getting Wet, enter. fire without gcc:ring burned. crones oller d oudy 'Ii. and lilies as long as Heallen and Earth. Now, Your Majesty has put all under Heaven in order, but he has not yet been able to attain tranquility and peacefulness. When Your Majesty resides in the palace, do not allow people to know. This way, the drugs of immorrality can perhapa; be obtained." ("Qin Shihuang benji: 6.1S7)

The First Emperor himself undertook several cours of his empire and personally performed many of t he most significant of these sacrifices. The sacrifices co ocher impolUnt deities were placed under the control of a great invocato r, who "offered the sacrifices according to the appropriate time of the year" (~ Fengshan shU,"l.8. 1377). These accempcs co gain control over cults to regional spirits involved a claim to rulership different &om the one found in the S hang and W estern Zhou mate rial. The Zhou con ques t had inllolved an attempt: to replace the S hang pantheon of ancestors with the Zhou pantheon (sec: C hapter I). The concern wu to utiliu one's ancestors to gain the support of H eaven. One thus performed sacrifices [0 build support nom the lower, more accessible lelleb of t he pantheon up to che higher, and t he higher ancestors then worked to pacify Heaven irself. Since the goal of me sacrificial acrion was to build towa rd higher powers, chere wu no inherent rendency to cxpand sacrificial sites; all the ruler needed was one placform to reach his ancestors. In contrast, the First Empero r's claims were based instead ~n a ritua.! system in which the rule r maintained personal control over all the land. T he sacrifices we re placed under centralized conrrol. and the First Empero r tralleled constantly throughout his realm and personally performed sacrifices in each area. H e marked these occasions by erecting stelae announcing his achiellements.

'39

Lu Sheng is calling on the ruler to become a True M1n. 2nd his description of [he True M2n is reminiscent of the descriprions of the adept discussed in the p rellious chapter: a True Man is unaffected by the elements. can 2scend to the skies, and lives as long as H eaven and Eanh. To Lu Sheng's sugges[)on. the First Emperor reponedly replied. ~ I hope co become 2 True Man. J will refer to myself as 'True M2n; rather than as T- (~Qin Shihuang benj~ ~ 6.~S7). The First Emperor rhereafter h2d (he schol2fS (be shi) compose p0ems on rranscendents and true men, as well as on his trallels (you) throughOut t he empire ("Qin Shihuang benji: 6.1S9). The form of rulel'$hip (he 41.

My undemanding of [he cbinu of immortality in lhil period h.1.~ bttn grudy aided

by Yil Ying.Shih. Life and Immornlity in [he Mind o( Han OWU"; idem, "0 Soul, Come B~ckr A Study in [he Ch:mging Concept:iolU of [he Soul and Anerli(e in Pre-Buddhill Chlna-; Nudham. Sc~l\Ct ~..J CiviliuuiOll ill Q,illd, 1: 91- 11); and Poo. /11 &arch ofP"SOlUl/ Wdj.,t, pp. 101-11. . ota. On the ma.ten of fonnu!al, teC Che.n p.n, -Zbnguo Qin Hall pll f.angshi lao lun-; Iud Ngo. DivilUlli~II. ""'rr rt poIi11~Ut dQIIJ Id OHIUI u drllllt.

'4'

A THEOCRACY OF SPIRITS

A THEOCRACY Of S PIRITS

First Emperor envisioned therefore became associated with me ascension literature discussed in the previous chapter: the ruler rravds and attains immortality. Such attempts to gain immortality were paralleled by the Qin ruler's own theomorphic claims. The tide invented for the First Emperor, huan~i or ~a ugusr god: had clear theomorphic pretensions (consider the inscription wim which I open this chapter, p. ns). The First Emperor was claiming to possess the powers of a di, a god, as well as the power to impose his will on the natural phenomena of the wo rld. M oreover. as a di. his rule presumably extended over the lesser spirits as well. The First Emperor's assertion of direct control over regiona.l cultic sites may imply such a claim. H ow £:ar his claims wem is impossible [0 say. given our limited sources. Certainly. however, numerous later stories portray him as having such pretensions. In a f.lmous Story ITom the Shiji, the First Emperor encounters troublesome winds and attributes them to the ill-will of a loca.l spirit. The emperor is not without means of dealing with such miscreants:

Indeed. as we have a.lready seen, Sima Qian presents Emperor Wen as urremely humble before me deities. Emperor Wen also abolished the posirion of~secret invocator"-the posicion instituted by the First Emperor [ 0 channel blame away ITom me ru1er rFengshan shu," ~8.1380)· The move was clearly intended to portray the emperor as a ruler willing to accept' responsi-

Floaring down [he Yangzi River, he arrived at the shrine of Mount Xiang. He encountered a strong wind and was almost unable [0 cross. He asked the scholars, "Which spirit is the ruler of Xiang!' The scholars fe!ponded: "We have hear
bility before the spirits and gods. With Emperor Wu (r. 140-87 IIC), however. the relationship with the world of spirits changed once again. I discuss the sacrificial system unde r Emperor Wu in more detail in Chapter 8; here it is enough to mention that he restored ltWly of the theomorphic claims made by me First Emperor. Like the First Emperor, Emperor Wu was deeply concerned with overcoming human limitations and achieving immortality; he undertook constant tours of his lands and personally performed the sacrificcs; he also employed fan"hi and was interested in the ascension literature. The court poet Sima Xiangru immorta.lized the Emperor Wu's intercst in ascension in his "Daren Cu" (Prose-poem on the Great Man). The Great Man leads a retinue of spirits on a journey through the cosmos and is presumably a reference to the emperor. The work is clearly modeled on the "Ywn you· (see PI'- lI7-l0) and in several places repeats me wording of the earlier poem. including me discussion of the surveying of the cosmos

ir.se1f. .. ' they observe the four WUte! ... they survey (fing png) rhe Fiery Mountain and drift aiongrhe Soft River. (Shiji, ~Sim.a Xiangru liezhuan," 117.3060) Similarly, the poem describes the Great Man as having direct power over spirits. Thus, for example, when the skies grow dark, the Great Man has Yushi ( the Lord of Rain) and Fengbo (the Duke of Wind) punuhed ("Sima Xiangru limuan,· 11].3060). The Great Man, therefore, hu di rect conrrol over the wind and rain, for he controls the spirits who direct such phenomena. The poem concludes with the Great Man leaving behind his procession and continuing alone: In the depths below there wu no Earth, in the expanse above [here was no Heaven. Looking about confusedly and with d osing eye!, he sees nothing.

'

.

A THlIOCRACY OF SPIRITS

LUtening indistinctly and uncertainly. he hearl nothing. Riding emptiness and nothingness, he ascends above Transcending. without friends, he residea alone. ("Sima Xiangru Liezhuan: 117.)06:&)

The Gre2t Man ultimately u'anscends the world of forms and Heaven and Earth themselves. The poem, in short. defines the Great Man as both totally dominating the world of forms and being completely &u of depmdence on anything within the world of forms-including other h\Ul'Wl5. If such views reprc..sented. in the "'Yuan you: a claim of autonomy. here they represent,

when utilized co describe the ruler. a claim of absolute power.

The Ascension ofHuangdi: Divine Kingship

in the Qin and Early Han H ow can we OIIccounr for the new S2crificial sYStem of the Qin and u.rly Han~ And how should we interpret these claims of ascension and immorta1ity~ The ingestion of medicines and other substances as a means of artaining immortaJi£)' is a clear difference from breathing exercises that concentrated the qi (see Chapter s, pp. 109-11). But can we go further than thisf It is important to avoid l simple dichotomy of"philosophicaJ" discussions of ascension and immortali£), versus a more "superstitious· view on {he part of the First Emperor and Emperor Wu. We need to develop a position from which we an understand the competing cosmologies of the time and the implications of those cosmologies. Unforrunately, our evidence is limited: we possess no writings from the JanK'hi, and our knowledge of court practices is limited to Sima Qian's statements and to the First Emperor's inscriptions. 43 However, we have enough to piece together at leur part of what was going on. Sima Qian portrays the Jangsh; as, among other things, liberating themselves from their forms (xin,gjit). As he describes the Jangshi l[ the COUrt of [he First Emperor: "They practiced formulu lnd the Wly of the trlnscendents. Their forms were liberated, smelted, and transformed. They relied on the lctivities of ghosts and spirits" ("Fengshan shu; lB.136&-69). The term xinfiit lppeared in the Shiwtn pas~ge discussed in [he preceding chlpter. H ere, however, the libenuion is accomplished through means different from those described in the Shiwtn: the fangshi rely on ghosts lnd spiria. 4l. For all ucdlellt allaly'is oflhe Fiur Elllperor. inlCriptions, .ee Kern, 1'ht Sldt /~Krip' riolU o/O'i" Sbib-h ...."l.

A THBOCRACY O F SPIRITS

Both the First Emperor lnd Emperor Wu supporred the JangJhi in the belief that these figures would help [hem gain lCCesS to the world of spiria and ultimately immortaJi£),' Indeed, the fangsh! claimed mlt their conrTol of me spirits enabled them to share in thost spirits' power. According to Sima Qian, Li Shaojun, an important figure at the court of Emperor Wu, claimed to be able to "control phenomena~ (shj wu). Since such powers were regularly as<:ribed to spirits, people It the time "took Li Shaojun to be l spirit" ("Fengshan shu," 18.138S)· These abilities to control phenomena are the Slnle u those me authors of the "Neiye" attributed to their prlctitioners. However, the "Neiye" argues that the adept obtains these powers through particular forms of selfcultivation, and this cl1im, as we saw, is based on a monistic cosmology; insofar as everything consists of qi, then the more refined, the more spiritlike, one ClIl become, the more power one has over less refined ii, In conrTut, the fangJ,j claim these abilities through their utilization offormulas, formulas that aJlow them to gain control over both spiria and forms. Most of the references to the fanglhi in the Shiji porrray their attempts to summon (wi ~) spirits. One enmple among many is Sima Qian's description of a certain Shaoweng, His knowledge of"formulas for ghosts and spirits p s him an audience with the ruler. In response to Shaoweng's proposals, the emperor builds a palace at Ganquan to summon the spirits rFengshan shu," 18.1)81-88), It is clear from Sima Qian's accounts thac Huangdi was a major figure for [he fanK'hi. Indeed, many of the sacrificial reforms of the Qin and early Han empires were responses to the fanglbl·s claims concerning Huangdi's riNaJ actions and eventual ascension to Heaven. For example, a certain Gongsun Qing presented llener co Emperor Wu relating how ·Huangdi had become a transcendent and ascended to Heaven." Gongsun Qing claimed the letter had been given him by Shen Gong. like Gongsun a rurive ofQi. Shen Gong wrote: M

Of the seventy-cwo kings who have lttempted the fent and J~", only Huangdi was able [0 ascend Mount Tai and give the fi"t Slcrifice. The Han ruler who lnempts it willliso .ascend and perform the ffl1f. If he does .ascend and give the fenf, he will be able to become a transcendent and climb to Heaven. ("Fengshan shu; ,g.IUl)) Gongsun Qing a1so told the emperor: These five mountains (Mounts Hua, Shou, T Ii Shi, Tai, and Dong Lai] were where HUlngdi often tuvded and met with spirita, HUlngdi at timCi fought wars and ae ti mCiltudied to become I transcendent. He w.as concerned thlt the hundred fami· tiel oppo.ed hi. way, 10 he thereupon had anyone who oppoled ghOItS and .pirin

'44

It. THEOCRACY OF S PIRIT S

beheaded. After more than a hundred years he was able with the ' piri($. r Fengsh:an shu; UI.1191)

[0

A THBOCRACY OF SP IR ITS

obtain communiC2Cion

Gongsun Qing further recounted thoU a dr:lgon came down from che sky [0 meet Huangdi. Hwngdi and seventy court officials mounted [he dragon 2nd ascended co Heaven. Upon hearing this. the emperor expressed a wish to be

like Hu.angdi '''Fengshan shu: a8,1394 ). During the preparatioru (or me fong and Jban sacrifices. Sima Qian (ells la,

the emperor.wa invoked Hwngdi:

-

The Son of Heaven had heard from Gongsun Qing and [he f~ngJ7i that when Huangdi and those before him had performed the jC"g and Jh
thing different nom what it does in the Shiwtn. The statCtnent [hat the flingshi have me ability to have their ~fomu liberated (xingjie), smelted. and mnsformed" does not appea r to mean that the spirit is liben.ted from the form. The claim is instead linked to the statement that the fllngjhi can control phenomena: the fllngjhi can transform their forms just as they can tn.nsform and control other forms. Despite the similarity of vocabulary with the Shiwen, the claims are in F.icr q uite different. In contrast to the ascension literarure, t here seems to have been no interest in liberating the spirit from the body. On the contrary, the evidence poinrs toward a claim of bodily ascension. Perhaps we arc now in a position to understand the claims underlying the effortS of t he FifS( Emperor and Emperor Wu. The Qin-Han sacrificial system involved a radically new approach. The goal was for the ruler to contact personally as many divine powers as possible in order [0 obtain their power. And the fllngshi were employed as specialists precisely for their ability to summon these divine powers. This overt concern for diviniution and immorrality may appear to be quite similar to the concerns of the ascension liter;l.ture, but here the goal was neither to transcend che world of forms nor to grasp the One and thereby gain power over the world of forms. The goal was rather to become a Di and to exercise direct power over the world of fomu. In short, ideologically the empires under the First Emperor and Emperor Wu functioned as a celestial imperium, with the rulers as the organiz· ing thearchs. The Ord er of Textual Authority: LuJia's Xinyu The do minance of claims thac the emperor and his ritual specialisu e~er­ cised direct power over the narural wo rld helps to explain why opponents of such aspecu of the Qin and Han imperial o rder continue co utilize monistic cosmologies. As discussed in Chapters '1 and 4 , monistic cosmologies developed during the Warring Stares period in o pposition to the ritual specialises employed at the courtS of the day. During the early H an, several figures began appropriating the vocabulary and claims of such texrs to make similar critiques of t he developing imperial order. The signiScance of this point becomes clear when we rum to those thinkers who were highly critical of JUSt these theistic aspects of the Han imperial syStctn. Much of their polemic was aimed at those who claim the ability to control or even in part to become a jmn.

'4'

A THBOCRACY OF SP IR ITS

A THBOCRACY OF S FIIUT S

As early as the beginning of the Han dynasty, Lu ) ia issued a strong critique of much of this {heisric cosmology. Lu)ia was firmly commined to basing practice on the precedenrs laid OUt in the Five Classics. In his reading. {he Five Classics had been established by sages during the decline that set in following {he end of the three dynasties. Their goal was ro allow later generaoons to correspond once ag
and the use of esoteric .2.rtS. And Lu Jia·s belief in the uselessness of such an 41 attempt is made dear by his pithy summuion: King Ling died. Lu Jia·s mini-n;lrrative on King Ling .tnticipates many concerns exptessed throughout me Xi"J". Lu Jia W2S deeply concerned with both the growing cencralization of the empire and me predominance o f esoteric am. As we can see in his criticisms of King Ling. Lu J ia's point is t hat these twO ;Ire interrelated.: extreme imperial centralization exceeds the proper bounds of the human and attempts to ;lppropriate the powers o f the divine. Accordingly, Lu J ia views me sages of the past as those who maintained the proper hierarchy of me political and religious spheres thro ugh the creation and maintenance o f sacrifices. Lu Jia's exemplar here is the Duke of

.,.. For diKwliolUl ofLu Jill and the Xi~Ju, sec Luo Genu, "Lu Jill Xi~J" kaozheng"; XII u.."t H4" li.xiut lhi,~; 8S - 108; and Ku, A Q,i"tst Mirro. for M4gill'.lfl, pp. Il-l1. 4S· ZIIOv,lIon, Duke Zhao, '1. .. 6. Lu Jill, Xin1" (hereinafter cited In the IUt), "Huai Iii," B.sa.

FIIgtU-n,

___

__

~

_

i

_

.

~

_

,

This is like people who are not able to embrace humanena. aOO put in practice propriety. They differentiate the minute and lulxie and gauge Huven and &rth ~

By -Strange arts; Lu Jia is presumably referring to the sorts of esoteric practices dominant at the COUrt of the First Emperor. The possibility mat this may be Lu ) ia's object of criticism becomes all the more likely from Lu Jia's subsequent comments: King Ling "built a tower at G;lnqi of a hundred rm. He hoped to ascend (Jmg) the floating douds and look into the patterns of H e;lven. fu such, he died ;It Qijt (-Huai lil; 8.5a). The explicit critique here is the utempt to understand the patterns of H eaven thriJugh ascension

The antithesis of the proper ruIership of the D uke of Zhou is the use of bws, punishmena,:llld military expansion by the First Emperor ("Wuwei," A.7a). The contrast dr;lwn is thus between the First Emperor, who crossed both temporal :llld spatial boundaries (b reaking precedent, conquering fo reign lands), and the Duke o f Zhou, who maintained t hem properly. Given this viewpoint, it is perh;lps nO[ surprising that Lu Ji;l wu also alarmed a[ the rise offigures who devoted thenuelves to the search for spirits and immortality rather [han to the texts mnsmined by the sages:

_

King Ling of Chu occupia!. a territory of a thoWiand Ii and enjoyed a state of a hun. dra!. ciries. He did nor place humaneness and propriety fim, nor esteem the way and the power. He embraced strange anI [four graphs missingJ.·

The Duke of Zhou regula-ta!. and creua!. {he rituals and music. gave suburban ncrificd to Huven and &rth and the W~"g sacrifice to the mountains and streanu. Annies were not insriruta!., and punishmenu. rules, and laWl! were suspended. And yet from:ill within the four seas tribute came. ('Wuwei," A.7a)

~

King Ling's attempt to usurp power on his own brings his downfiill. All of this makes Ling an ideal target fo r Lu ) ia. However. Lu Jia does not stop at simply presenting King Ling as departing from proper ri tual practices. Like the First Emperor, me king gains territory through esoteric arrs rather man moral governance:

Zhou:

_

Formerly, King Ling performed cradtmaking and said, ' May it ~ thar r will PO"t:U :ill under Heaven. - It wu not aWipicioWi. He flung down the tonoise shell and, curs_ ing H eaven, yella!., "This is such a small thing. and yet you will not give it to me. I must fake it for myself." The people were troubla!. about his never being satisfied. They thWi flocka!. to the rebellion as if they were retu rning home. 4S

~

Lu ) ia's criricisnu of fornu of rule that transgress textual precedena can be seen in h is discussion of King Ling. who ruled Chu from HI lO 519 BC. Ling had a well-established reputation in Warring States narratives as a transgressor. For example, the ZWOzhWIl" presents him as follows:

in surch of spirits and transcendents, neglect their parenu, injure their bones and flesh. CUt off the five gr:l..ins,4I discard the Poetry and Docllnlt"/.I, tum their backJ on the valuables of Heaven and Earth, and seele: the way of immortality. This is not the

47. Lu Jill', crilique here is IjrniJ..r 10 A,.,.un·1 nezatm pon .... yal or Alexander', dainu of deifICation; "Succusivc ddeg:ltionl I"rom Greece alto pruemed Ihcnuclvu, and lhe de:kgalu, lWuing ceremouial Wfadu, wkmnly approached Alexander and placed golden dupleu on hi. hud, at if their coming were a rimal in honollr or a god. Bill, for a11lhat, hi. end wa, neu" (Au illn, A"4NIiI, 7.~P; tr:IIU. Aubrey de StlincOllrt, in Arrilln, ~ OImp
d , Rudlns~ ttaJ~ fl.

"I' meaN A.III)

A THBOCkACY OF SPIIlITS

[0

penetrate the age :md guard against thosc who oppoJe it, ("Shm wd;

Such critiques, indeed, are common throughout Lu Jia's writings. Elsewhere

he suus: N ow, people of the present day do not study the PIKtry or rhe D"Cllmmts. pncrke hUnl2lleneu and propriety, (graph missing) the way of [he sages, or lurch the depths of the ciani" and arts. They inseud discuss unverified words. swdy absu rd.

evenrs, map out rhe physiognomy of Heaven and Earth, dilcuss eli'e irregularities of disasters and alterations, (two graplu mining) the way of kings, and differ from the ideas of (he sages. They ddude the minds of the scholars lnd influence che intents of [he commoners.... Those who hur them take them to be spiriD (Jxn). r Huai Iii: B.sa-b)

The problem for Lu Jia is chat those who try to aeuin such powers may cbim for menuelves, and inOuence ochers to claim. complete autonomy iTom the teachings of the past sages. Even if their practices are ineffective, even if they cannot really become spirits, such figures nuy delude the emperor into thinking he can claim complete independence from the moral and political order of the p~t sages. In shon, for LuJia, one of me primary problems of his age was precisely that beliefs in divinization led rulers to seek inordinate power for themselves and to arrempt to rnnscend the proper role of humans in the cosmos. These beliefs also promoted the emergence of groups of people claiming to be spirits. In both cases, the teachings and ritual forms of the past sages were being rejected. Perhaps in part because of such concerns, Lu Jia attempted to formulate a radic.ally different cosmology, one that redefined the normative standards of hum.an activiry within the world. Lu Jia argues that hum.ans should be subordinate to H eaven .and that humans accordingly should act to complete the process begun by Heaven: ~Heaven gives birth to the myriad things and uses eanh to nourish them. Sages bring them to completion~ (~Dao ji,~ A.I.a). Valuable objectS are generated by the bre:.r.rh of Heaven and controUed by the numin~ity of the spiriCl. Subde, elegant. dear. and pure, they Boat or sink with the spirit. One can work [0 nuke them useful. and ahaust their essence to make them into utensils. Therefore r say; Sages complete them. This is me me:.r.ns by which one regulatU things, penetrate:! change:, controls essence and narure. and makes manifest humanenesl and righteousnesl. (~Dao ji: A.2b)

A THBOCRACY OF SPIR ITS

Although spirits conrrol the n.arural world. the human .appropriation of those things involves an .anempt neither to connol the spirits nor to become a spiri(. On the contrary. hunun sages have their own proper activity within the natural world, and that is fundamentally different iTom, and yet fully accords with. the powers of the spirits. Moreover. these actS of hum .an appropriation are elCJllicitly seen u a process of bringing mings to their proper completion. In other words. the sage who has properly cultiv.ated himself through a study of morality and past exemplars will understand and be able to complete me natural processes begtm by Haven and overseen by the spirits. Humanity. therefore, has a crucial and necessary role to play in the proper unfolding of the natural world. Although human potency is nat. for Lu Jia, comparable in nature to that exercised by the spirits. (he human action of appropriating n2turai materials fo r human consumption is .a necessary moment in the proper unfolding of the process begun by Heaven. In short, me particular powers of humans are fully distinct iTom. even while forming a complement to, those of the spirits. As such. the actions of the uges are in accord with the harmony that guides the movement of H eaven and Earth, yang and yin: t heir actions harmonize with Haven and Earth, and meir power (dt-) matches yin and yang~ rOao ji: A.la). Lu Jia develops this position by arguing for a monistic cosmology in which humans .are inherently linked to the rest of nature through '1i. Accordingly. he argues, incorrect actions on (he part of humans gener.are negative '1i. which in tum generates abnormalities in the natural world: -Bad governance generates bad qi; bad '1 i generates disasters and irregul.aricies~ (-Ming jie: B.7b). Owsters and irregularities. therefore. are signs dut humans have acted improperly. And Lu Jia also draws the full conclusion of this argument. If b2d governance crates irregularities in the natural world, then it follows that good governance reswrs in an orderly natural universe. In omer words. order in the natural world depends on proper human behavior. In his cosmology. humans are responSible for ordering the cosmos: nature requires proper hum2n conduct in order to function as it should. Lu Jia develops (his argument in full in the "Shen wet ch2pter. He usetU again chat the sages acted in acco rd with [he proper patterns of Haven and the proper movement of yin and yang: It i. like the rulenhip of Tang 2nd Wu. 2nd the ministership of Yi Yin 2nd Lu. They practiced punilhment' in accord with [he Jealons of Heaven. 2nd they 2Cted

'5'

A THEOCRACY OF SPIRITS

A THEOCRACY OF S P IR IT S

by following yin and yang. Above they studied the patterns of Heaven. and below they aamined the hearn of the people. ("Shen wei: A.lla)

With the pa.rterning (Ii) of the sages. kindness reached to the insects a.nd moisture reached to the grasses and trees. All that was generated by receiving the Iji of Heaven and that moved by following cold and heat stretched [four graphs miuing] and in· clined their ears to listen and be transformed.. The uges examined things without any loss. Above they reached the sun, moon. stars, and conndl:u:ions, and below they extended to the birds, beasts, gruses, trea, and ins«u. ("Mingjie: B.h)

But, he goes on, the uges, precisely by following the patterns of Heaven, brought the world intO proper accord: 'They adjusted Heaven and Earth and summoned (wi) the ghosa and spirits" ("S hen wei," A.llb). By following the patterns of Heaven. the uges provided the cosmos wim ja proper hierarchy. They also thereby summoned the spiria-following me patterru of Heaven thw conferred on the sages the powen chimed bfthe Jangshi. Once the cosmos was properly ordered by the uges and {he spiria were summoned, the patterns of Heaven we re further revealed through diagrams and writings: 'The Yellow River produced [he diagrams. and the Luo River produced the writings" ("Shen wei," A.ll b). This revelation appears as well in t he Xid v,wan: Therefore Heaven and Earth generated the spiritual things; the uges patterned themsdves on them. Huven and Earth changed and transformed; the u.ges imitated them. Heaven hung down the images and revealed auspiciousness and inauspi _ ciousness; the sages represented them. The Yd10w River produced the diagranu. the Luo River produced the writings; the saga patterned thenudves on them.oIII In the Xid v,wan, the movement is entirely one way. and me sages simply imitate the patterns revealed by the cosmos. With Lu Jia. the process begins with the sages follOWing the parterns of the cosmos. and the sages mereafrer order the world in its proper hierarchy. And only then are the diagrams and the writings produced. In the Xici v,wan the uges are imitaton; for Lu Jia they are responsible for the proper formation of the cosmos. The uges thereby obuin the Way: "Therefore. as for the Way, they lodged it between Heaven and Earth. Is this not what in ancient rimes was called obtaining the Way?" ("Shen wei: A.llb). The role of me uges is again noteworthy: the sages placed the Way in its proper position and thereby allowed humans to practice it. If fo r Zhuangzi obtaining [he Way means finding a source of power o utside human cwtom, for Lu Jia it means follOWing the way of the sages within the cosmos adjwted by me sages. ~ The full im plication of this argument is that it was the patterning of the sages t hat brought the cosmos to ia proper completion. As Lu Jia argu es in the -Mingjie" chapter:

It was (he uges, therefore. who brought order to t he cosmos. from the heavens above to t he animals below. They furthe r gave laws and calculations to order the entire worldhuman and natural alike; Even {he bird., beasts, grasses, and trees hoped for each to artain its position. They guided them with laws and regula.ted them with calculatiotu. How much mo re so humans! The uges received the brightness of Heaven. rectified the movements of the sun and moon, and recorded the measures of the stars and constdlatiotu. They acco rded with the benefits of Heaven and Earth, defined the appropriatenCI5 of high and low, instituted the advantageousness of the mountains and rivers. They leveled the four seas and divided the nine regiotu. They brought likes and dislikes together and unified the CUStoms. T he Yi says, "Heaven arrayed the images a.nd showed auspiciousness a.nd inauspiciousness. The sages patterned thenuelves on them: Heaven sene our the good way, and the sages obrained it. They spoke of managing the changes of divination, chans. and constdlariotu. If below there were declining CUStoms. they would transform the deficiencies so as to correa their decline and make them flourish. They regulated things and settled the age. Afterward. there was no fC("[ifkarion that could not be put into practice, and no one who could not be regulated.. Therefore it is said, ·Pan:em [yourself onJ the brightness of Heaven and accord wim the benefits of Earth. Observe the transfonnarions of Heaven and extend them to me categories of the various myria.d events." ("Ming jie: B.8a-b)

so

T he quoracion attributed to me Yi is in fact raken from the Xici v,wan. But the argument goes far beyond anything fOWld in that work. The sages are

so. Lu J;.." ..,fettnCcs [0 [he Kici Vo ...." may proYide clun as to why lhat lat became so importam for Han ConIUcWu. Puhaps one of d>e ruaOOI for lhe !loIU importance of lhe Kic, VoU~" was rhat Han ConlUcians &:IW the work as an effecli\>(: ugumem for approprialing cO'rllologicalthinking a"J for studying the dasSic:allextl handed down from antiquity. The Kit; Vouu \V(:dded cOlmological thinking with an assertion of [he importll1C( of (he past - a crucialluue for Ih( H an ligura who were Irying 10 do just (hn. Ahhough there is no evidCl1c( 10 IUgel! thac tiM: amhorl of the Xici VJ.u would hI\>(: set:n Ihe Yi all I ttl{( in any way (ompJrlbk 10 til( SIH 0 . the Sh.t"p/>u, il is noi1Clhc:lcu poslible Ihal OIl( of (he .eatOll. lhat

>,>

A TH80CRACY OF SPIRITS

not JUSt patterning themselves on the cosmos hut are in

A THBOCRACY OF S PI R ITS

F...ct bringing the

cosmos into accord with the proper p.acrerns. Lu Jia underlines this .argument by contrasting me rulers of the past with mose of the present day. He begim by discussing the ancic:nu: The: calculatiON ofHe3ven and Eanh are the signs (xiallg) of fate. The slin (mining eight graphs] eight cOnJrdlarioru are all urayed, each with its own ruler. The myriad $proU[$ em different padll, and the thousand models have different (omu. The

sages accorded with their propensities (shi) and adjwred ,hem. They cawed snWl and luge to not mutually (one graph missing] and squues and circles to not confl ict with e.u:h other. IThc: sages] divided them with standarw and regulated (ji) them with measures. The stU S could nor be seen in the daylight, the sun did not shine at

night. thunder did not appear in the winter, and fros[ d id nor descend in the sumIf ,he minilfen did noc: attack the ruler, then yin would not encroach upon

mer.

yang. If at the height of summer it was not hot, if in cn:reme wimer there was no f'tos[; if black qi bound the sun, comeu scattered in brightness, rainbows appeared in wimer, torpid insects hibernated in summer, Mars brought di$Order to the connd· lations, and vadOUI starl 10le their orbits-if thil occurred, the sages accorded with chese alterations of Heaven and recrified their losses, patterned (Ii) thei r extremities. and rectified their roor. ("Si B.gb- lOa)

wu:

The sages followed the movements ofHe.aven and E.anh to understand fine. They then grasped the propensities of things and adjusted them accordingly. Here a~, the sages .arc gnnted tremendous power over the natural world, but only because they understand fone and recognize the proper propensities of things. They thus regul.ate things according (0 their correct tendenciC5. In other words, they exercised power over the cosmos not by altering it to fit their will but nlher by .according with fate and the natural propensities of mings. And LuJia explicitly contT'Uu such sages wim the rulel'S of his own day: -rhose who are rulers in the present time are not like mis" rSi wu," B.loa). The rulers of his own day reject the proper patterns of Heaven. Like King Ling trying to ascend ro the skies .and gau on the patterns of He.aven, the rulers of the day are, according to Lu Ji
ehe Yi u./eim.:udy came [0 be considered one of ehe dallies was bccauso: of ehe Xit; lb ... ~, per· haps Han Confucianl laW in lhe Xici lb ...." a powerlUl argumene as to how co combim COol' mology with danieal Khounhip, leading I~ both to include ehe Yi among Ihe cLulie. Ind 10 duigmle Ihe Xici th ..." u one of ill commenlariu.

>s,

to themselves nther thm trying to bring the cosmos intO accord with the proper patterns. The decline at issue here is companble to the one pre5Cnted by both Mencius and the aumors of me Xid Wllall. Beuuse of this decline, Confu. cius, a latter·born uge, was forced to establish the classics in order to allow humanity to .again bring itself into .accord with the patterns of the cosmos: "The later .ages declined .and fell to waste. T hereupon, [he later s.age (i.e., Confucius) established the Five Classics md clarified the six am to COITC'spond to Heaven, govern E.arth, and probe a.fF.airs~ rOao ji." A.:lb). Confu· cius was not a king and therefore could not order the world himself. Accordingly, he had no choice but to establish [he classics. This at leut opened for later kings the possibility of bringing order to the world again by following the teachings of the classics. In the "Benxing" ch
'54

A THB OC RACY OF S PIRI TS

A THEOCRAC Y OF S PIRIT S

no more-if he does all thiJ, hill hanw and feet will not be wearied, his tan and eyes will not keme disordered. his rhought.S will not (one graph missing). his plam will be wit hout cnor. Above, he will detcrmine u right and wrong on rhe pattenu of

to match the .un and moon. their actions can be made to harmo nize with [he .pirits (Ultll) and the numinous (lillg). They can ascend (dmg) high. extend far, Tueh rhe darkness, and see through the obscure. They har it even without sound and see it without form. r Shu .hi," A...,a)

Heaven. ("Si

wu: 6.SJ.l-b)

The abilities to penetrate rhe tnlnsformanons of me spiries and to understand fate and fortune arc those: often ascribed either to riroll specialists or,

in texts like the "Neiye,· to the adepts of sc:lf-culriv.1rion. In typical fashion, Lu Jia wigns these powers to those who study and grasp rhe patterns of Heaven. And. since the classics make manifest the parrcms of Heaven. rhe scholar who follows them is able to gain the powers usually ucribed to those who practice self-cultivation.

And here: we can rerum to Lu Jia's critique of rhe pr.u;:tirioncrs of esoteric artS. AJ mentioned earlier. he criticized such figures for. mlong other things,

discuuing -the irregularicies of disasters and alrerations," However, Lu Jia was concerned nor with omenology per se (which, after all, he practiced himself) bue with defining itS proper methods and proper goals. Lu Jia's point is that such techniques must be based on a correct Wld'erstanding of the pbce of humans within the cosmos, rather than in mistaken attempts to gain personal immortality or to bend the cosmo.s to rhe will of theomorphic powers. In other words. Lu Jia's cosmolog:ica..! claims enable him to accept aspcca of the practices of rhe day. bue to argue that only those like himself-those who have tead and understood the cla..uics-are capable of accurately interpreting the sigru of natute. Since ehe later sages organized the cbssics in part to explicate rhe proper way thar humans should conduct themselves and cortes pond to Heaven, only those who have srudied such works should provide guidance co rulers. Accordingly, Lu Jia appropriates the language of the ascension literature but argues thac chese powers are obuinable only th rough chose who understand how properly to use the past for the present: Those who arc good at spcalcing of the past harmonize it with the present. They are able to rratUmit the distant and examine it with the nerby. TherHore, when they dUruu athirl, above they amy the accomplishmenrs of the five chareN and contemplate these within themsdves; below they rank the failu res of Jie and Zhou and cake these as prccautioIlli fo r themselves. If they do 10. their power (de) can be made

SI. RLadingju< ~ (OT

p.t Vt.

' 55

The text posits a hierarchy. with humans fully distinguished from the heav. ens and the spirits. In this cosmology, humans cannor become spirits. H owever, Lu Jia horrows che language of ascension and divinwcion co desc ribe the sage: his powers nutch those of che sun and moon, his actions harmo· nue with those of the spirits, his understanding ascends and extends to aU, and he has keen sighr and hearing. Lu Jia's repeated move, men. is a double argument: there are normative patterns ofhumanencs.s and propriety given by Heaven. and humans. like the cosmos icsclf. must abide by chese normative patterns. This is an argument he appropriaccs, quite explicitly, ITom the Xici mlUllI. Bur he also wants to claim that sages bring order ro the cosmos. Heaven may ptovide normative patternS, buc the cosmos itself (including the actual movements of Heaven-the sun, stars, and constellations) docs not always follow those p1tterns. Thus. the sages must organize the cosmos to accord with its proper patterns. This argument is in some ways a radicalization of some of the points found in the Mrnciuj; with Menci us, there was a him (although certainly he never explored it explicidy) mat the fullest manifestation of the proper order was to be found in the sages. not in the empirical actions of Heaven itself. Heaven is the source of che proper order, insofar as H eaven is che force that grants humans the nature thar, properly cultivated, generates a true sage. But Mencius also implies that H eaven icsclf, for arbittary and inexplicable reasons. sometimes acts in opposition to the proper order. Lu Jia Wc.es this a step further. Heaven is still the source of the no rmative patterns. But sages are the ones who organize the cosmos to fit such patterns. It is not JUSt that the cosmo.s-induding Heaven-sometimes fails to follow the proper pattems; it is thac the cosmos needs the sages co org:anizc it into the normative patterns. Indeed, Lu Jia emphasizes. even aftet the sagcs initially a..!igned the cosmos, me seasons occasionally appear at the wrong time, and stars occasionally wander from rheir orbits. Sages are still required to return things to their proper alignment. The sages do noc follow the natural world; they organize it. The crucial point. chen. is chat sages can find a normative pattern in the operation. of H eaven, but Heaven itself docs not always act in :accord:ance

'56

A THE OCit AC T OF SPIR.lTS

A THBOCRACY OF S PIRITS

with these proper patterns. The patterlU (hOI.( should guide humanity can be discovered in the nacuul world. but me n2tur.:U world itself does not necessarily operate in [cnns of these p:utems. In short, the proper normative development of mture is realizable o"ly in humanity. Indeed. it is humanity

[he norion that we can transcend the forms of this world. Accordingly. he is as commirced to the notion of f.ate as was Mene-ius.

who muS[ bring [his no rmative parrern to nature. Heaven itself only plants the seed for this development, bur even Heaven does not always realiu the perfection that should be attained. It is the Jage, not H eal/cn, who fully realius the normative p.tttem that should n2rurally exist. By building this into a teleological .argument, Lu Jia is able to deny (he tension thar pervaded Menciw. The ohvious question [hen arises: why! Why did Lu Jia radicaliu the Mencian ~ition~ And why do so with explicit reference to t he Xici wuan, a text that in part wu written ill oppoJitioll (0 attempts to grant sages such powers and in opposition (0 much of the self·culti ... uion literature whose ...ocabulary Lu Jia is borrowing? I suspect the answer lies in Lu Jia's political position. H is opposition to the theomorphic claims of the First Emperor is clear throughout his writings. as is his opposition to attempts to become spirits. His recurrent e... ocations of the arguments in the Xici thUIIII thus appear (0 be a call for ruJers to recognize and subordinate themsel ...es to moral patterns. H ence his critiques of ligures like King Ling for trying ascend to the hea ...ens and to (he First Emperor himself for his transgressions of the proper hierarchy of the world. Instead. howe ...er. of simply arguing for subordination to the normati...e patterns of (he cosmos, Lu Jia's mo ...e is to claim thlt the sages of antiquiry followed these patterns to gi...e the cosmos its proper order. Sages are granted enormous power o...er the uni ...erse. bur such powers are achie ...able only by those who follow the proper patterns. Sages ordered the cosmos, but only by following a normative hieurchy. And (hen they died. The sages did not transgress or a...oid fare; they un· derstood it and acted accordingly. In this sense, Lu Jia is following Mencius: e...en ifMencius hinted thu sages at times enacted rhe proper plttems better than Hea ...en itself. he still emphasized the imporunce of follQwing fate. of accepting what Hea...en ordained. And Lu Jia. while granting far more power to the sages than Mencius e...er did. equally argues the importance of know· ing and subordinating oneself to f.ate. Although he appropriates the language of the ascension literature to describe the True Man. he strongly opposes

'57

Conclusion It is clear that claims to ascension lnd di ... iniution hld become a common idiom by me Qin and early Han periods. fu J ha...e argued. however. one !u.s to pay careful attenrion (0 precisely what rypes of claims l re made in each of these texts: what forms of di ...iniurion lte callcd for, what rypes of prlctices are in...ol...ed, and why such puctices are in...oked. In (his chapter and the ptcceding chlpter. we ha ...e seen tens positing several different cosmologies. In the methods associated with the jtJIIgsm. the concern was to gain control o...er those spirits who control forms and thus to be able to appropriate their numinous powers. The ultimlce result of this is the full di ...iniution and ascension of the ?ltron. In this model, Humgdi achie ...~ bodily ucension because of his abiliry to summon spirits. communicate with them, and gain their powers. Such l model achieved prominence in Qin and early Han imperial ideology. which was forged around a cllim of theomorphic dominance-the ruler as he who could control spirits and bring order to the world. In contrast to this, the authors of. for eumple. me ~Xinshu~ chapters of the GUIIII~i (discussed in C hapter 4) argued for a mo' nistic cosmology in which one could gain powers over phenomena bur only through techniques of self·cul ti ...ation, and in which one could become a spirit but onJy within the limitations of the human form. 80th these models in...ol...ed claims on the part of (he practitioners that they could control phenomenl. but the methods employed and the cos. mologi~ posited were rldically different. In contrast to both of these. one finds cosmologies that olTered not a method of controlling phenomena but a c:tll for a transcendence of forms and liberation from them. In ...arying WlYS, this framework can be found in the "Yuan you,~ [he dialogue berween Humgdi and Guang Chengzi from (he ZhUIIIIgzi, and question four of the Shiwor. In all (hree texts, Huangdi is presented as ha...ing achie ...ed, or u ha.... ing recei...ed telchings of how (0 achie ...e, a full ascension k om the world. No claims were made for controlling nlturll phenomena. nor wu it claimed that these methods would benefit hunaniry. O n me contrlry, the explicit concern wu with transcending me realm of the human and :ascending to l higher le ...e1,

",

A THlIOCRACY OF SPIR I TS

Lu Ji:t appropriated much of the ascension vocabulary, but he did so to argue in favor of following textual precedents. In his system, humans maintain the cosmos, hut they only do so [0 fulfill the process begun by Heaven. H umans and Heaven are ritually separated, and each has its distinct roles and duties. And hum2Ils muse follow the textual guides transmitted to them. For Lu Jia, submission to textual precedents entails a rejection of claims of autonomy from the world of the past sages- claims he saw as r2ffipanr among divinization pr2ctitioners, from the emperor on down. ~ These texts allow us a glimpse of a mcinaring moment in c.arly Chinese history, a moment in which opposing forms of self-cultivation practice. visions of human power over me narur.U world, and notions of proper rulership were debated in te rms of competing claims about ascension and divini:ution. These [eletS made claims for different cosmologies, different modes of self-cultivation. and diffe rent modes of rulership involving different methods of bringing order to the world. Still other teXlS called for yet another form of ascension that involved a full transcendence of the human and a rejection of attempt'S to gain such control over natural phenomena altogether. Thus, if Graner was wrong in his evolutionary interpretations of China, he was right to see a highly agonistic world in Han textS based on the constant concerns of humans to appropriate the powers of gods. The specific articulation of this conflict, however. did not involve a sacrifice of me gods, as Sahlins describes in Polynesian cultures, nor an appropriation of the fecun· dity of the people. as in Plutarch's narrative. T he concern in the early impe' rial COUrtS of the First Emperor and Emperor Wu was rather to gain conrrol over increasing numbers of cultic sites, to gain access to and rhus obtain the power of ever more powerful gods, to become more and more divine, and, ultimately. to aKend to the higher realms directly. In short, me empire in China emerged in conjunction with claims of divinization. And such claims were not based on an assumption of continuity between man and the divine. Rather. the power of such claims arose precisely from a sense of appropriation and transgression-of rule rs' mmsgressing earlier ritual systems and appropriating divine powers r.o themselves. And so potent were such claims that, for this brief period, even the critics of aspects of these imperial practices made usc of the vocabulary of divinization and ascension while trying (Q reassert a separation of the ritual powers of humans and the spirits.

7 Aligning and orienting the cosmos Anthropomorphic Gods and Theomorphic Humans in the Huainanzi

A passage that we looked at briefly in the Introduction from the "Dixing" chapter of the HU
I. Hw~,· .... "ti, "Dixing." 4.).1. lluve benefited &om the exceUem translation by John Major ill hil Ht.Vtll4"" .&arll. iH .&arly H." Thowtht, pp. IS'-6J. :I . The hler.rchy I. dllCulrcd In lI}Ore detaU In Hw.l"ant'. "Diting." 4.!la.

ALiGNIN(l AND ORIBNTING TH B COSMOS

ALI(lNIN(l AND OR.lBNTIN
The goal of becoming a spirit is higher than both of these goals. Moreover, theomorphic powers are obained through techniques of self· cultivation. rather than formulas of contro)' One does not seek to control the spirits who control n2rura! phenomena; rather, one practices self-cultivation in order to become a spirit oneself. The passage revw a series of 2rguments that appear throughout the HlUI i"a"2;i. Several chapters of the ttxt claim that there is no distinction betwetn hununs 2nd spirits and clut hununs are fuUy c2pable of becoming spiria. The authors posit 2 cosmos popub..ted by meomorphic humans and 2JIthtopomorphic gods, linked together within a monistic cosmos of natural patterns (/i). }u a consequence, many pass.ages in me HuailHmri replay themes we have seen in preceding ch2pters, but with significant shifts. For example, another Huaillall2;i chapter has a discussion of the tilt in the heavens from the northwest to the southeast described in the Ta iyi Jhmg Jbui. The Taiyi wIIg mui sees rhis as evidence of [he way th.u the forces of the narural world spontaneously respond to one another (see Chapter +). The Huainall.:i authors, however, present it as the result of 2 battle between theomorphic beings of the past. To quote John Major·s excellent translation: Anciently Gong Gong and Zhuan Xu fought, each seeking to become the Tharch. Enraged, they crashed against Mt. Bumou; Huven's pillars broke, the cords of&rth snapped. Heaven tilted in the northwest, and thus The lun and moon, Ital'S and planers shifted in thar direction. Earth became unfuU in the southcut. and thus The wnery flooch and mounding som subsided in thn direction. l Again and again in the HlUIillllllli, themes we luve sun in e.arlier worksp.articularly the norions of :ucension, uJf-divinization, and me control of n2tUral phenomen2-.are rewoven in a compkx fashion. What is this ttxt doing~ Why does it posit 2 cosmos run by theomorphic beings, in which humans can become spirits and gain power over the world?·

1. H .... ,""~ri. 'Ti:l.nwen: ).La-<1r. rmu. John Major. H... wn~,.,j £,,d, '" &rlJ H~" ThM,r/II.

p.6a.

n..

4. For an cxc(Uene nudy of ehe ecxuw hilCory of ehe Hw.'",,,ri. _ Roeh. TtXlw..r His· f0'14!/'( H""i.",,~ Tlw. My undemmding of Ihe eext h.u been gr(ady aided by Ihe anaiy"' in iCanaya, ROl6 ttlti I("i; Cnarlu U: Blanc, HIUI'·N." Trw; Major. H... ~t",,.,j &rm I" &rlJ H~~ Thowp. md VanJceuberge:n, 'The liw.'"'"'' and Uu An·, Claim co Moral Allihorlcy ."

,',

FoUowing the W 2y: The 'Y u2nd.ao~ Ch:l.pter The first chapter of the work. the "Yw.nd.ao,~ s opens with a description of the Way, which is more primordial th2n either He:l.ven or E:lrth: -rhe W2y covers H e2ven and carries Earth, extends the four comers, 2nd opens up the eight points. ~6 The tat then introduces twO ancient beings whose actions set me cosmos right: !he two earliest 2nd most ancient august ones7 obtained the h2ndle of the W2y 2nd positioned themselves in the center. Their spirits roamed (you) with the transformations so as to pacio/ the four qua rten~ (1.lb). H ere, as repeatedly throughout the Huailllln.:i, the language of the :ucension literature is borrowed and given a political implication. But, unlike Lu Ji2, the authors of the Huai"an.:i accept the claims of the ascension literarun:. The move, in orher words, is not to appropri2ce and reinterpret the language of ascension but (0 accept the claims and then re.ad them politically. The narural world flourishes under [he twO august oncs: Their power (de) mad( Heav(n and Earth Sourish and harmonized the Jin and J~"g, modulated the fou r seasons, and instigated the five phases. By {their} giving brcarh ( 0, guiding. shdtering. and nurturing. th( myriad things were all born.. .. "RainboW$ did not cm(rgc, and mercers did not appear. This wu all brought about (~hi) by their cherishing power: (1.2.20). The 2Ugust ones have the power to bring 2bout harmony simply by holding fast to the Way. The texts [hen rerums to 2 discussion of the W2y: "Now, me uppermost W2y generates the myriad chings 2nd yet does nor possess them; it completes and transforTl'U the images and ye t does not control them" (ua-b). The po_ litical argument here: is th2t JUS t a.s the W2y gives rise to everything and encls in possession and control. so will the ruler who can hold fast to the W2y.

5· My cr:lIlJlae)a1lJ of Ihil chaJXu have been gready aided by , , - gival in Lau md AnICS. y ...." Doc. 6. HIUI'PUl" ti. "Yuancbo: I.La; hcr(inanucilw. in the text . 7. The preciS( idemity of ehe$(: fWO figures is unclear: lom e commenUlOri r(ad lhan as F" Xi and Nr. Wa; IKher$ read dl(m ill F" Xi and Shen N ong. Baud on r(f(fences elKwhete In ell<: liwGi"uli (,och 11 ehe 1..:anming" chapm discwfed below). F" Xi and Nr. Wa may wdl be lhe figure. imendw. Jl(r( . However, eheir precise ideneity iI irrelevant: Ih( impor. cam po~n II ehillhe luehorl ar( IppWillg co primordial figurel who pm:~w. Humgdi.

,6,

ALIGNING AND ORIENTING THE CCSMOS

ALIGNING AND ORIENTING THB COSMOS

Since [he august ones organized the cosmos thro ugh their d" those among the later- born who are able ro ascend can unify themselves with the harmo nized eosmos. As an example, the authors discuss the ancient charioteers Ping Yi and DOl. Bing:

self to the p.mems of the cosmos. H ere again, the vocabulary is drawn di· rectly from the .ascension literature:.as in the "Yuan you~ poem (see C hapter 5), he who ascends is presented as being able to command and control these spiritS. And, again as in the "Yuan you,H the ad ept then ac hieves a higher level: after ascending and roaming through our the cosmos, the adept rerurns to the Pivot-the point, as we saw with the twO august ones, of power: -After inspecting and illuminating all, he goes back to hold fast wiehin so as to make himself whole. He surveys (Jing ying) the four comers and rerurns to H the Pivot (I.}b). He inspectS everything and then rums to himselfj he sur' veys everything and then rerurns to the Pivot. The parallels between these sentences imply that the adept's body becomes a microcosm of the cosmos. Thus, although he surveys t he entire universe, the adept never leaves his form. By grasping the Way, he roams the cosmos and yet stays in his body:

As for the charioteering of Ping Yi and DOl. Bing in ancient times, they mounted the cloudy chariots and entered the clouds and rainbows. They roamed the subcle mins . ... They surveyed (jingji) the mOUntaiN and rivers. tread on Kunlun, and entered the gHes of Heaven. Charioteers in an age of decline, evenif they possessed light chariots, good horses. m ong whips. and sharp goads, would be unable to com· pete with them. (I.Zb-3a) As we have seen, the term jing had become common in the ascension literarure to describe an adept's surveying o f the cosmos. The term is utili-.:ed with that same meaning here in order to discuss t he ascension of Ping Yi and Da Bing.s The analogy between charioteering and rulership is d ear. the ruler cannot succeed with strong controls. The great man, therefo re, is one who links with Heaven and Ean:h di· rectly: -Therefore, .a great man (da zhangju) is calmly without forethought and tranquilly without anxiety. H e takes H eaven as his shelter and Earth as his carriage; the four se.asons as his horses, .and yin and yang as his charioteer (I.}a). The great man becomes one with Heaven .and E.arth. H e ascends and joins in the movemenrs of the cosmic tra nsform.acions themselves: -He mounts the douds .and crosses through the mists. H e is rogether with the maker of rr.ansformarions (zao hua). H e releases his intentions .and rel.axes his rhythms so as to race to the Great DwellingH(I.}a). He foUows the patterns laid out by the twO august ones and thereby guides the spirits of wind .and rain: H

This is why he goes rut and yet does nor get

~gitated,

goes &r and yet does noe

get tired. His four limbs are not moved. his keen hearing and sight are not dwu.gcd, yet he knows the boundaries and forms of the eight points and nine regions. How? By grasping the handle of the way and roaming (you) through the land withour limit. (I.lb) Since his body is one with the cosmos, he is able out manipulating anything:

to

conrrol everything with·

Therefore, by taking Heaven as his shdter, there is nothing that is nor covered: by raking Earth as his carriage. there is nothing that is not carried; by taking the four seasons as his horses. there is nothing that is not controlled {mil; by taking the yin and yang;u; his charioteer, there is nothing that is not completed. (1.3b) As the authors argue later in me chapter.

He orders (ling) the Master of Rains to clean his path and commands (mi) the Baron of Winds to sweep off the dust. Lighming he uses as his whip and thunder as his wheels. Above he roams (you) in the wilds of the mist and clouds. and below he emerges from the boundless gates. (1.3a-b) Unlike Lu Jia, the authors present the wind and rain as being under the control of spirits. The adept can gain control over the elements by linking him-

8. A simiLu u~tement Can be found in the "Shuzhen" chaJXer:"Hii [dle True Man·s] spirit surveys (ji"g) losmn and Taimng without difficulty. enten the four leU UId nine rly· erl without becoming wet" (HW4 ilUl"ti, "Shuzhen: ~.I n).

Now, all under Heaven is something that I possess, and I am something that all un· der Heayen possesses. Between all under Heaven and mysdf. how can there be any d.istinction~ As for possessing all under Heaven. why must one maintain measures. administer authority, and manage the handles ofl.ife and death so as to carry out one's requesC$ and commands! What is called possessing Heaven docs not mean thu. All it means is obtaining onesdf. If I obtain myself, then all under Heaven obtains me. If I and all under Heaven obtain each other, then we will always possess each other. H ow could anything come between us! What is called ·obtaining onesdf" is to make onesdf whole. He who makes himself whole then becomes one with the Way. (1.14b-lsa)

,6,

ALIGNING AND ORIENTING THE COSMOS

The an210gy with rulership is cle:u, lnd the authors make the political

implications of the cosmology explicit. They strongly oppose harsh laws and punishments (1.5a). aspects of 5ucecraft closely associated in the early Han with the S(;lte of Qin. They further argue against a St UC based on the will of a single ruler-anomer probable reference to the Qin: Therefore, if we rely on the abilities of one m:l.rl, it will be insufficient to regulate even a lrod of three mou. But if you cultivate the successions of the W ay's pmerns (dao Ii) and acco rd with the spontaneity of Haven and Emh, then even the six harmonies will not require bahmcing. Therefore, Yu, in dearing and draining. took according with the water as his guide.. (l.sb)

Proper rulership meOlns ucording with the patterns of the Way .and the spontaneous movements of H eaven and Earth. This is, in a sense, a political reading of the ~Inner Chapters~ of the Zhucmgzi: the sage-Icing's goal is simply to be in harmony with the natural patterns. The .authors use this cosmology ro argue for a non-agonistic vision o f rulership. They t h us d escribe the ruler in terms strongly reminiscent of the

ALIGNING AND O RIENTING THB COSMOS

Thus. as me .authors d escribe Shun: ~He gruped the mysterious power (de) in his mind, and the transform.ations were hastened as ifhe were.a spirit {ruo Jhtnr (1.7b). By implication, me spirits in this cosmology have the power to hasten the [T;lJuform.ations of the cosmos. The two august ones esublished me cosmos originally by holding fast to the Way, .and spirits serve to keep mese processes running. Humans have me potential to become like spirits as well and mIlS can help maintain this order. This reference to becoming like a spirit is remin iscent o f the argument of the "Neiye.~ And, indeed, in some ways the argument of the ~Yuand.ao~ is similar. For example, as did t he authors of the self-cultivation chapters of the Guanzi, the Huainanzi authors develop meir argument in temu of the interaction of form, qi, and spirit: "The form, spirit, qi, and intention, e.ach resides where it is fitting so as to follow wh.at H eaven and Earth do. The form is the w dwelling ofufe, qi is the filling oflife, .and spirit is the regulator oflife (1.16ab). In contrast to the Shiwen chapter discussed in Ch.apter 5 but very much as in the self-cultivation chapters of t he Guanzi, the concern here is to keep mese three properly linked:

LAozi: He thereby positions himself above, yet the people do not regard him as heavy; he resides in front. yet the multitudes do not view him as injuring them. All under Heaven turn to him, while the licentious and depraved fear him. Since he does not struggle with the myriad things, no one Struggles with him. (1.4a) As in the LAozi, the sage is able ro lead. but the people do nOt realize he is leading them. But there is a crucial difference here. The LAozi emphasizes an agonistic sitU3.tion in which the adept-ruler w.as struggling with the W.ay, with his subjects, and with his rivals. Fo r example, the aumors of the LAozi underline the fact that the people would not recognize the SlIge standing before them because that is a wise strategy for conrroUing t he people. In concrast, the authors of the Hu~ imlnzi chapter :.lre de nying any kind of conflict. M oreover, the authors of the H uainanzi do argue mat the ruler has a function in the cosmos: the ruler needs to d o more than simply accord with a pre-existing order. The ordet was esublished by the two august ones by holding fast ro the Way. And the goal of the uter-born ruler is to help continue these processes: Thus, the affairs of all uoder Heaven cannOt be managed (wei); one accords with their spontaneity and pushes them. The a1teratiolU of the myriad thinga cannot be examined; one grasps their essentials, retu rns to them, and huten. them. (I.)b)

Now, man is able to see dearly and hear keenly. His form and frame are able to be raised, and his hundred joints can be bent and stretched. In analyzing he is able to di.ninguish black and white and see ugliness and beauty. In understanding he is able to differemiau: idenrity and difference and clarify right and wrong. How:> It is because his qi filli up for him and his spirit directs for him. (1/I6b) The key is to h.ave the spirit control the form. instead of me opposite: "Thus, if one takes the spirit as the master, the fonn will follow and be benefited. If one takes the form as controlling, the spirit will follow and be w h.armed (1.17.a-b). Indeed, the main role for the fonn is to provide a proper resting place for the spirit: -His essence .and spirit .are thereby daily d epleted and travel dist.andy. If for .a long time it overflows and does not rerurn, the fonn will dose its openings and the spirit will have nowhere ro en ter~ (1.17b). Despite these similarities to m e ~Neiye,· however, and d espite the comparable claims that a h uman can, through self-cultivation, become 1ike a spirit," the overall argument of {he ~y uandao" is quite different. For m e authors of the ~Neiye,~ by becoming like a spirit, [he .adept gains [he ability to contro l t hings (mi wu) and can underst.and good and bad fortun e without resorting to divination. SpiritS, in other words, h.ave direc t control over narural phenomen.a, and humans who gain the spirits' power do the s.ame. In the

,66

'"

ALIGN I NG AND ORIENT I NO THB COS MO S

ALIGNING AND OR I BNT IN G T HB COS MO S

cosmology presented here, spirits also have control over narural. phenomena.

But mis raises an important point for the political argume nts of the chapter. The authors arc commined to claiming that by foUowing thei r reachings. the adept will gain concrol; yet, because of me way they build on Zhuangzi. they are also commined co saying that mis power is potenrially available to w~ grasps t he panerns of m e Way. This does not mean that anyone can become a ruler; on the contrary. like Z huangzi. t hey sec such an issue of social position as o uaide the control of humans. But they do want to claim that me power to control can be gained by anyone, regardless ofsocw posicion:

but these phenomena are part of a normative process. Their acrions, in other words. arc defined precisely as are in me W Inner Chapters- of the Zhuangzi: spirits simply do what thcy are supposed to do within the order of Heaven. And, therefore, huma ns, when they become like spiriu. do the same. ~ with Z hwngzi. rhe sense here is thar any conRia between man and H eaven i5 entirely the fault of man. The way to overcome it is to follow one's spirit and accord with the order of H eaven. This point is spelled OUt in the authors' discussion of self-cultivation. The concern here is to define a fully non-agonistic norion of self-cultivarion: proper self-cultivation. t he authors argue, involves not a usurpation of divine powers but a proper :acceptance of them. The argument is made by building on elements ofZhuangzi:

mer

When a human is born, he is ,till: this is the Heavenly natu re. He moves only when he is :Jfecred. This is the goodness of nature. Things u rive, and che spirit respond.!. This is the movement of knowledge. Knowledge connccrs with things, and likes and dislikes ue horn therefrom. When likes and dislikes are completed into forms, kno wledge is seduced from the outside. He is unable [0 retUrn [0 himsdf, and the Huvenly patterns (liQn Ii) are extinguished. Thus, one who reaches the Way does noc U$e the human to change Heaven. He transforms with things on the outside but does not Jose his disposition on the inside. ([.1-a) Humans have within thenuelves a H eavenly nature. If one moves only in response to cxtemaJ stimuli, o ne will not lose mat nature. The authors define this as the spirit responding. The spirit is thus clearly linked to H eaven. H owever, if one allows one's responses to become hardened into preferences, then one loses [hat H eavenly nature and extinguishes the Heavenly panems. The conclusion me autho rs draw is thar me person in possession of the Way does not rry to change H eaven. As with Zhuangzi, therefore. che spirit should follow H eaven. Forms seduce one into the attempt to change (Zhuangzi wowd say overcome) Heaven. The key is to tailor o ne's response :as closely :as one can to me pattems of Heaven. H owever. the crucial difference between the argument in the "Y uandao- and thar in the Zh,umgzi is that the authors of the "Y uandao~ want to claim that grasping the Way grants one powers of conrrol. Even if t hese powers arc nothing but the ability to direct and h:asten the normative pacterns, chey arc no netheless powers that can. like che work of the two auguSt ones. bring order to the cosmos.

He who grasps the panerru of the Way (dt!Q Ii) so as to pair himsdf with alterations, controls foUowers when leading and controls leaden when foUowing. How is this so~ Ifhe does not lose dut which enables him [0 concrol others, then orhen are unable co comrol him. (J.sb) Like Mencius, these powers are available to anyone. But, unlike Mencius. these authors do not see t he rwer as the only figure able [0 ac hieve such control. The authors also quote a variation of the same passage about the l ibera~ tion of the O ne that we have followed from the 'Neiye~ to the Shiliujing to che Shiwrn: •As for the Way: when che O ne is established. the myriad things are generated. Therefore, che pattern (Ii) of the One cxtends to the four seas. and the li beration Uie) of the O ne reaches the border of Heaven and Eanh ~ ( I.llb). This passage is essentially identical to t he version in the ·Chengfa~ chapter of t he Shiliujing: -rhe liberation Uit) of the One allows an explora~ tion (,IxI) of Heaven and Earth. The pattern (Ii) of the O ne enencis to the four seas. ~ But. in conrrast to the ·Cheng&.· chapter, the HUQinQn zi is not arguing for me creation of a cenrraliud sute apJnratus with un ifYing laws. O n the contrary, the argument is that linking oneself to the O ne aJlows for the things [0 be generated properly. Pu in che !Aori. {hen, the adept is called on to link with the One and mereby become an ancestor to the myriad things. But, in conrrasc ro [he !Aozi. this text accepa t hac {here is a proper Jnnem to the cosmos that the adept, by esClblishing the One. will generate. The authors of this chapcet of che HUQ inQm;i are thus building on both the ascension literature and tcxa such as the Shiliujing and t he Laozi, but they are altering both. Indeed, despite these overt parallels, the argu ment is most indebted co Z hu.angzi·s notion of the spirit as spontaneously following the o rder of H eaven: -liberation" involves subsuming oneself to the order of Heaven. And the authors of the HUQinQnzi arc working out the polidcal implicatio n. of chil.

,68

ALIGNING AND ORIENTING THS COSMOS

ALIGNING AND ORIBNTING THB COSMOS

The Ascensions ofHuangdi and Fu Xi: The MLanmint Chapter Similar concerns underlie the "Lanming,~ chapter six of the Huainanti. The authors argue that, by practicing the proper techniques of self-cultivation, a process thar includes. among other things. accumulating one's spirit (Jhtn), 9 one gains enonnous power over the natural world. One figure who pnu:deed such techniques had phenomenal powers: "The Duke ofLuyang was in banIe with Han. As the b.mle became intense, the sun began to set. [The Duke] grasped his spear and waved it. The sun on his behalf went back three nunsions (6.lb). Of interest here, however, is the mechanism by which he achieved the power to move the sun from irs orbit: the mastery of correlative influence through self-cultivation. ~These lre evidences of the mutual influence of the divine 'Ii (smn 'Ii)" (6.lb). The spirits connol nltural phenomena through corre!:.ttiviry: shw is the most refined form of 'Ii, and hence the most resonant_The more refined, the more Jmn·like, one becomes through self·cultivltion, the more resonant one becomes. Moreover, the processes by which such resonlnce occurs, the authors explicitly lrgue, are spontaneous, zir!!n (6.4a). As in the 'Yuanda.o" chapter, the authors develop this lrgument by citing exemplary charioteers. Insteld of a whip, Qian Qie and Da Bing use essence and spirit [0 guide the horses: -rheir desires and wants formed in their chests, and their essence and spirit (jing and smn) p= over to the six horses. This is the way that they drove them without drivinf (6.6b). These argu' ments provide l cosmological underpinning for the !:.trger political c!:.tims the authors Wlnt ro make. The sage should indeed become theomorphic, should indeed possess tremendous power vis·i·vis the natural world, but such pow· ers can be glined only through l process of self·culcivltion mat brings one more into alignment with the spontaneous processes of the universe and more in lccord with the nlturally given order. In short, me uge in such a system g.1.ins connol over the natural world only by p!:.tcing himself within l normltive order of refinement. To explicate the political implicadons of this argument, the authors relate a story about Huangdi's ordering of the world: M

In ancienr rimes, HUlngdi put in order :.tll under Haven, and Li Mu and T ilihan Ji assisted him. He thereby put in order the courses of the sun lnd the moon, put in order [he qi of yin and yang. reguil[ed the lengd15 of [he Se:.l.Sons, corrected rhe numbers of the c:.tlendar. differentiated male and fem:.tle humOlf\5, distinguished m:.tle and female animals, made clur the upper lnd lower, lnd r:.tnke
10.

9. HlUlil'Ulnl'·. unrning."

I.e Blanc, HlUli·N~n Tl~.

6.1a; hereinafier cited in the text. s.:e the vt;ry helpful analy.iI in

EUewhere I have argued apinst the attempt by mny schobr.

10

categorize the

H"4i,,~nri all "Huang-Lao" text (,ee Th "mh;"",lma oje.."J;"n. pp. 160-6m71). Here we "'" lIlIother reUOllIO q\leltion .uch I ca!egor~rion: Huangdi (the l-Iuan& ofl-luang.l:.!o") is

explidtly pretented III kner ruler !lun Fu Xi.

'7'

ALIGNING AND OIUBNTING THE COSMOS

ALIGNING AND O RIENTING THE COSMOS

The argument of the "Lanminf chapter is quite different from that found in (he texts of spiritual liberation discussed in Chapter 5. For example, in contrast to the Shiwen, which utilizes a dualistic framework to argue for a liberation of the spirit from the form, the "Lanming" chapter uses a monistic framework to call on the ruler to bring order to the universe through resonance. Nonetheless, there are striking parallels with (hese other texts. For example, the practices advocated hete include" concenrraring .essence and "accumulating spirit" (6.7b-sa). Fu Xi, moreover, is explicitly described as ascending to the heavens, and, JUSt like the adept in the "Yuan you," he is explicitly described as attending the court of Oi. Although this chapter does not refer to the liberation of the spirit from the form, it does have many of the same generic elements seen in the ascension texts discussed in Chapter 5. Thus, the authors of the "Lanming" chapter of the Huainanzi are appropriating a monistic cosmology and self-cultivation techniques in order ro critique aspects of the prevailing imperial ideology. The model posited here is a monistic one, based on a cosmology and set of practices traceable to texts such as the "Neiye: In the "Lanming" chapter, H uangdi is praised as a figure who was successful in bringlng order to the cosmos, but he is dearly inferior to Fu Xi, the figure who ascended to the heavens and ruled through inaction. The argumems are similar to those of the Shiw~n and the Zhuangzi, but here there is an explicit attempt ro read the issues politically.

vast-no one knows its end or Jimid So ovedlowing-no one knows where it Stops! Thereupon, they divided and became yin and yang. sepamed and became the eigbt pillars. Hard and soft completed each other, and the myriad things were thereupon fonned (xing). The rurbid qi became iruecu, and rhe refined qi became humans. 1I

H

A Cosmos Aligned

by Spirits: The "Jingshen" C hapter

We are now in a position to understand the chapter with which I opened this book: chapter seven of the Huainanzi, the "Jingshen"-one ofthe richest and most complicated texts on divinization and cosmology written in the early period. Having traced the claims concerning divinization and cosmology up to the mid-second century BC, we can now attempt a full reading of the chapter-to see what is behind its treatment of the subjects of spirits, diviniution, and cosmology. I will argue that the "Jingshen" can be understood in its full richness only by placing it squarely within th'~ context of the debates of the second century BC. The chapter begins with a cosmogony: Long ago, in the time before there existed Hu.ven and Earth, there was only figure (xi""g) without form (xing). Obscure, dark, vasr, and deep-no one knows in gate. There were two spirits born together; they aligned Heaven, they oriented Earth. So

The cosmogony is in some particulars comparable to that given in texts such as the Taiyi sheng jhui and the -Dayue- chapter of the LUjhi ,hunqiu. But the crucial difference is that in the ]ingshen" chapter spirits align and orient the cosmos. Although the cosmos is not actively constructed but emerges spontaneously, spirits organize and arrange it. The spirits are themselves gener~ ated spontaneously: the word used here is sheng, literally, "born: These spir~ its then actively plan and orient the cosmos. To some extent, chis cosmology is simib.r to (hac dominant at the Han Court-spirits have me power ro control natural phenomen~ But the phrase used to characterize the way they control phenomena is jing Jing. As we have seen, these terms have a long history of association with the surveying work of sages before an act of construction and became important in the ascension literature to describe the surveying of the already formed cosmos that an adept undertakes during a spirit journey. The .authors play on both of these meanings in the chapter. Through the opening cosmogony, the text has defined the cosmos as monistic, with Heaven and Earth being separate yer composed of the same substance. Within this monistic cosmology, humans are composed of refined qi. Moreover, the duality of H eaven and Earth inheres in humans: "This is (he reason that the essence and the spirit .are possessions of Heaven, whereas bones and limbs are possessions of Earth. When the essence and the spirit enter their g.ate, and when bones and limbs return to their root, how can T exisrt' (,.Ia). This duality is clearly reminiscent of the dualistic systems analyzed in preceding chapters. And the question that doses the passage seems to imply a concern with preserving the individual from death: if at death the essence and spirit return to He.aven and the bones and limbs rerum to Earth, then the goal of cultivation, presumably, would be to keep the two together as long as possible. That the authors are headed in a very different direction becomes dear in the next sentence: "Thus, the sage models himself on H eaven and follows his disposition (qing). H e does not adhere to custom; he is not seduced by men"

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ALIGNING AND ORIBNT I NG T HB COSMOS

ALIGNING AND O RI BNT ING THB COSMOS

(7.12). The immediate: move of the chap ter. then, is not (Q present a progr:nn

the mating of Heaven and Earth, then man conuins within himself this

for achieving immortality but to claim an alternative to tradition or autom as the basis of lurhoriry: one's innate disposition. Disposition is, like: essence 2nd spirit, th us linked to H eaven, and the luthors h:lVe now defined disposi.

same duali£),.

tion, essence, and spirit as the basis on which the S
Thus it is said "The one generates the rwo, the rwo generate the chr~, and the three generate the myriOld things: The myriad things carry the yi~ on cheir back and embr.:l.(:e the J'I~g. They rub the qi so as to become harmoni~ed. (,.tb) The text is recapitulating the fundamental claims made thus far: the cos mos is monistic and divides into two. The two then mate and generate the rest of the cosmos. The emphasis is on the nature of the res ulting things: the entire cosmos is composed of yin and yang elements. As a consequence, the embryo inherently includes both elements. Therefore it is s.aid: In the firsr monch there is far, in [he second month blood, in [he thi rd month tissue, in the fourth month flesh, in the fifth monch cendons, in the sixth month bones, in the seventh month it is completed, in the dghth month there is movement. in the nimh momh it grows more active, and in the tenth month it is born. (7.tb) In contrast to the account o f the birth of humans in the Shiwen (see C hapter 5), th ere is no claim here thOit the spirit flows into th e form; tather, birth is a process of qi gradually becoming a form. The resulting individual is inherently both spirit and fonn. Unlike the origins narrative of the Shiwen, the cosmology is not structured to emphasize the importance of liberating oneself from one's form. The text continues to describe the process of formation: HWhen the form H and fram~ are th ereby com plete, the five repositories thereupon take form (7.1b). The five repositories are the lungs, kidneys, gall bladder, liver, and spleen. As we shall see, [hey are the places where qi is both stored and circulated. Each of these is linked to a particular sense organ: Thus, the lungs control [he eyes, the kidneys control the nose, the gall bladder controls the mouth, and the liver controls the ears. On the outside are the expressions, on the inside are the internals. Opening and dosing. expanding and contracting. each has irs alignment (fing) and regulation (fi). (7. tb_1Ol)12 A fundamental alignment naturally emerges with the formation of the human body. And this alignment is inherently linked to the alignment given Heaven and Earth by the primordial spirits:

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ALIGN I NG AND ORIENT I NG T H E COSMOS

ALIGNING AND OR I ENTING THE COSMOS

Therefore, [he he~ is round like Heaven, the feer a.re square like Eanh. Heaven has four seasons. five phases. nine poinrs. ;lod )66
Therefore the blood and the qi are the flowering of humanity, and the five reposito· ries are the essence of humanity. Now, when the blood and the qi can be concen· rrated by the five repositories and do nOt fall away in excess, then the chest and stomach will be full, and lum and desires will be reduced. If the chest and stomach are full and lusts and desires are reduced, then me ears and eyes will be clear, and one's hearing and seeing will connect with their objects. When the ears and eya are clear, and one's hearing and seeing connect with their objects, we call this clarity. If me five repositories can be gathered by the mind, and there is no deviarion, then dis· rracted attention will be overcome and the movemenrs will not be corrupt. When distracted attention is overcome and the movements not corrupt, then the asence and me spirit will flourish and the qi will not dissipate. When the essence and the spirit flourish and [he qi is not dissiparing. then one will be p:m:erned (Ii IJ). (1.ab)

Humans, in t his cosmology. are the partners of Heaven md E:arrh. Not only are ;ill these composed of the same substance, but all are formed by the same alignment. Accordingly. the internal forms of humans march both their external forms as weU as the larger forms of (he cosmos: the five repositories are linked both to the five senses and to natural phenomena. Given this linkage of microcosm and macrocosm, with each having the same normative alignment, the concern of the text is how both the human body and the cosmos can be kept properly aligned. Thus, the cars and eyes are the sun and moon; blood and qi are wind and rain.... If the sun and moon were to lose rheir courses, [here will be eclipses and no light. If the wind and the rain were to be untimdy, there would be ruin, destructions, and disasters. If the five stars were to lose their courses, the regions and kingdonu would receive calamities. Now, the way of Heaven and Earth is of utmon vastness with greatness, but it must still modulate its arrayed brilliance, and it must still cherish its divine illumination. How can [he ean and eyes of humans last long and labor without rest! How can the essence and spirit last long. hasten on, and not stop? (?aa-b) Even Heaven and Earth maintain the proper alignment through modulation. Without this, nothing in the natural world would function properly. This point about wind and rain deserves furthe r comment. Control over the winds and rain was a power widely ascribed to spirirs. In the "Jingshen," however, wind and rains are simply part of me natural movement of the un iverse as initially aligned by spirits. In other words, spirits do, in an ultimate serut, control the wind and rain, but only because they were the ones who aligned the cosmos so that the wind and rains would come at the proper time. Moreover, the spirits themselves became the cosmos they aligned, and it is meir portncy that maintains this cosmos. Accordingly, it is th rough proper modul.uion and cherishing that the divine illumination can be maintained. And sinc~ humanity is a microcosm of the universe, then the same muat hold true for humanity:

The concern here is precisely the same as thar seen for the cosmos as a whole. The cosmos operates according to the alignment laid OUt by the initial spirits, and as long as the spirit of the cosmos flourishes, everything within me cosmos follows this proper alignment. However, if rhe spirit were to dissipate, men the sun and moon would lose their courses, the wind and rain would come at the wrong time. Since humans are a microcosm of this world, the problems h umans ~ce :tre identical. If one's essence and spirit dissip:tte, one ceases to be aligned. If, however, one can bring one's movements into proper alignment, the essence and spirit will flourish, and one will be p:tttemed (ti)-which is to say, one will be in accord with the proper alignment of things. The consequence of being patterned is th:tt one becomes divinized: When one is putemed, one will be balanced. When one is balanced, one will penetrare. When one penetrates, one will be a spirit (shell). When one is a spirit, one will thereby see without anything not being seen, one will theteby hear without anything not being heard, and one will rhereby act without anything not being completed. (,.lb)1l We thus arrive at the claim of divinization in the ·Jingshen~ chapter. Diviniurion is here the result of bringing oneself into accord with the proper parterns. Being a spirit, in other words, means that one is inrultively patterned and aligned. And since me ilignment of the h uman is :t m icrocosm of the alignment of the cosmos, in this state the adept hears, sees, and acts properly. I). Thil claim of diviniulion is repealed bIer in che chapeer ar 7.sa:"The b~" and lhe 1'" UKlice and 'piril are held fur 10 their roor. Ouch and

.ouI. are po.Ildono;d In his abock the

Ufe are nOl: a1le,td by hun. TI~refore he iI r&d: dM: ultimate .pirir."

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AL I GNING AND OJlIBNTING THB COSMOS

mat

The consequence of becoming ;I. spirit, chen. is not one gains control over naNral phenomena or th:u one's spirit becomes separated from one's form and transcends the world. It is, n.eher. that one is able to sec, hear. and 2 C( in accord with the alignment of the cosmos. The lrgumcnt thus far seems in some: ways like a complex cosmological rewriting of arguments like those found in texts such as "Neiye~ and ~Xinshu- chapters: the cosmos is monistic, spirit and essence :art che mose refined and most potent pam of [his cosmos, and through-cultiv2tion humans can increase and concentrate their spirit and thereby come [0 understand the movements of the cosmos. However, the ~Jingshen8 is not arguing rhar such cuJtivation allows the adept to control things (wi wu)-the claim that. in Tldically different ways. both the "Neiye" and the JangJhi made. On the contrary. the concern in the text is to place the adept within the existing patterns of the cosmos. This chapter. in other words, is headed in a very different direction from many of the texu we have bun exploring. The authors of the -Jingshen" emphasize the degree [0 which this rrumps the claims made by earlier self·cultivation texts. If, for teXts such as the "Neiye- and "Xinshu'- acts of cultivation allow one to understand misfortune and fortune, cultivation here yields far more:

me

Now, orilkes are the doors and windows of the essence and spirit, and the ~j and will are the followers of the five repositories. If the earl ~nd eyes are inundated with the pleuures of sounds and colors, then the five repcnitories will be moved and nor remai n sertled. If the five repositories are moved and do nOt remain serded. then the blood and ~j will overflow and not Stop. If the blood ~nd ~j overflow and do not stOp, then the essence and spirit will hasten to the outside and not be held fast. If the es' sence and spirit hasten to the outside and arc not held fast, then thete will be no way to understand me coming of misfortune and fortune-even though mey might be u (huge asJ mount2ins. If one were to make the ears and eyes refined. (jllg), dear, subde, penerrating. and not seducible or desirous; if the ~i and will are empty, still, calm, peaceful, and with few desires; if the nve repositories are lietrled, pacified, abun· dantly filled., and not leaking; if the eucnce and spirit arc held fut within to the form and frame and do nOt reach oU[$ide, then one could witntsl all that has pused before and see all the events to come. If you arc srill not able to do this, then what of the mere distinction between fortune and misfortune:' ".ab-la) • The concern here. as in the "Neiye" and related tens, is to keep the spirit and essence within one's form. But in this cosmology, the yields are far grearer: one gains nothing less than a full understanding o f t he entire cosmOJ,

ALIGNING AND ORIENT I NG THE C OS MOS

including knowledge of the pa.$( and future. The ability to discern fortune and misfortune. the authors argue, is a trifling consider71tion next to this. Almost as if to underline this call for the .adept to follow the proper alignment of the cosmos, the authors begin invoicing the o ne (ext most cle.arly associ.ated with such ideas: the -Inner Chapters- of the Zhu'II1~i. Severa.! passages in the remainder of the chapter pl.ay on the themes-.and at times explicitly invoke specific images and p.assages-discussed ar length in Chapter 3. Heaven and Earth revolve and penerrate each other. The myriad thinj;$ are coUected and become One. If you are able to understand the One, then there is nothing that is not understood, if you are not able to understand the One, then there is nothing thar can be understood. It is like my being placed within this world. I am aUo one thing. I do nor know if all under H eaven takes me as completing it! things. More. over, if there were no "me: would everything be complere~ As such, r am a (hing. A thing like other things; a dUng in rcla rion to other things. How am I to be compared with other things! And how did my birth add anything. and how will my death be a loss? Now, the producer of trans(ormatioru made me into a dod, I do not have any mearu to oppose it. (7.lb-4a) This dear allusion to the Zhuan~i and irs call for accepance of one's fate had powerful implic.ations in the context of the early Han. At a time when the &earch for immortality had come to play an importanc role in cultural life-particularly at the imperial court- a call to accept one's lifespan and nOt seck to increase it certainly had resonance. As in the Zhuan~i, the mode of critique is to emphasize the necessity of viewing the cosmos as a whole, with one's life and death as simply part of that larger process: Now. the producer of transformation's g;tthcring and pulling OUt things is like a pot. ter's stretching ~nd nraightening. He takes earth ~nd that is all. When he malc:a it into buiru and POt!, it is nill earth. There is nothing that diatinguishes a complered vessel from broken shards returned to their liource. (7.4a) Despite these clear allusions to che Zhuangri, there are Significant differences. As we s.aw in Chapter 3, Zhuangzi's point in referring to a producer of transfonnations was to emphasize th.ar one's current form is simply a momentary product of the flux of the cosmos: the producer of things has made this particular form .and will soon make another. Al such, one ought not reify anything and view it as deserving of preservation beyond irs given allotment. But the argument of the au thors o f t he -J ingshen" is sligh tly dif.

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ALIGNING AND ORIENTING TH B COSMOS

ALIGNING AND OR IEN T IN G THE COS MOS

Ferenc their point is m at the substance of an individual is no different from the substance from which it is made-hence the statement mat .:I completed vessel is still day. Humans are o f the same substance as the rest of {he cosmos, and anyone individual is simply a momentary rearrangement of that

The sage eats enough to keep hil 'fi intact and dresses enough to cover 1m form. He acco rds with his disposition ('fing) and does not sedt what is SUperflUOWl. Nor possessing all under Heaven does not injure his narure. and possessing all under Heaven does nor add ro ha harmony. Possessing all under Heaven and nor possessing all under Heaven are the same. b.lOa)

substance. It is precisc:ly this monistic claim molt allows t he adept ( 0 gain power. Not only can he see the past and know what is to come, but all under H eaven submits spontaneously to the spirit: The spirit is trmquil ;md without limk. It is not dUpersed with things, and yet all under Heaven submits of its own accord. Therefore, the heart is the ruler of the

form. and the spirit is the treasure of [he hean. If the form is labored and does not ren, then it coUapse5; if the essence is wed without ccuing. then it exhausts itsdf. Therefore the sage values and honors it; he does not dare overextend it. (7.4b) Since spirits initially aligned and o riented the cosmos and since mey then became the cosmos mat they had aligned and oriented, all things (all forms) submit to spirit of their own accord. T hus, spirit is the basis for power. and that power consists of making the myriad things su bmit. Ironically. a generally Zhuang:tian cosmology is being appropriated to argue t hat the sage does possess control over aspects of the cosmos. But it is a fonn of control very different from that advocated by other texts such as the NNeiye" and farlgJhi. H ere, control is the power to bri ng about the order that should exist. Thus the sage. while possessing tremendous power, inherently follows his pattern (/i). completes his fate. and accords with Heaven: Therefore the sage uses nothingness to respond to something and invariably follows out his pattern; he uses empeiness to receive the substantial and invariably reaches his modulation. Quiet. contented. emptY. and srill. he thereby completes his fate. T herefore he has nothing that is deeply distant and nothing that: is deeply intimate. He embraces virtUe and blends in harmony so as to accord with Heaven. (7.5a) But what does this mean! What is accomplished by becoming a spirit. aligning wim the patternS of the cosmos. and according with Heaven~ In the ·Xinshu" chapters. as well as most rw ted teXlS discussed in Chapter 4. the sage was dearly defined as.1 ruler, and becoming a spirit meant t hAt the sage gained tremendous power [0 control things (mi WII). But for the authon o f the "Jingshen.· not only does the sage not gain such powers. but he is not necessarily a ruler at all:

'79

For the sage, there is no meaningful distinction between being this and being rhar. The sage is simply one who has become fully patterned on m e cosmos and is thus always able to act in accord with the world. T his is true regardless of what position he occupies. Although t he authors present the sage as powerful, and although they appropriate much of the vocabulary of the selfd ivinization literature, their consistent claim is a Z huangzian one: one's highest goal (and the inevitable product of becoming a spirit) is to accord with t he patterns of the cosmos. Thus far. t he telCt has been discussing the sage-the figure who has cultivated himself to the extent t hat his spirit is joined fast [0 his form and he becomes patterned and aligned properly. As a result. he sees and hears dearly, knows the p.1Sf and future, acts successfully, and brings t hings to their proper order. The text next turns to the True Man-the figure associated with ascension: As for he who iI called the True Man: his nature harmonizes with the Way. Therefore. he possesses, but it is as if he has nothing; he is full. but it is as if he is empty. He resides in [he One and does nor know dualiry. He orders what is inside and does not recognize what is outside. He makes clear the great puriry. is without conscious action. returns to the uncarved block, embodies the roor, and embraces the spirir so as [0 wmder at the edges of Heaven md Earth. Far-reaching. he appears [0 be outside the world of dust and dirt.... Although Heaven and Earth cover and nurture, he is not embraced by them. (,.sa) The True Man does not transcend H eaven and Earth: he is still covered and nurtured by them, respectively. Bur. unlike other humans. he is not embraced by rhem: he is not conditioned by their force. The True Man harmonizes with the Way and embraces his spirit. He wanders at the edges of H eaven and Earth and is not snared by eimer. In short, the True Man, unlike the sage, transcends t he fo rms and moves doser to the initial alignmen t of H eaven and Banh. Whereas t he sage tries to refine his eyes and ears so they can see and hear dearly. the true man discards them: "One such as he corrects his liver and gall bladder and discards his

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ALIGNING AND OR I ENTING THE COSMOS

ears and eyes. His mind and will are concentrated within, and he penetrates to and dwells with the Onc" (,.sb). The True Man's concern is the One, not m accurate perception of the world of forms. And instead of 2ligning and patterning his form and the five repositories. the True Man ignores them: ~His form is like rotten wood, and his mind like dead ashes. He forgets the five repositories. cuts offhis form 2nd limbs· (7.Sh). One of the differences between the sage and the True Mm, in other words, lies in their orientation toward the body. As we saw above, the birth of a human involves the gradu.a1 completion of a form, including the formation of the five repositories. The sage is the person who aligns his five reposimries with the rest of the cosmos 2nd holds his spirit fast to his form. He thus becomes.a microcosm of the properly functioning cosmos. In contrast, the True Man is oblivious to body .and form. Where.as the body is the s.age's founw.tion for H building.a microcosm of the universe, for the True M.an it is an irrelevance. The gnosis of the True Man is .accordingly different from th:lt of the uge: ~He does not study and yet knows, does not look .and yet sees, does not :lct :lnd yet completes, does not put things in order and yet distinguishes~ (7.Sb). The s.age sees everything and his actions complete everything: the True Man sees without looking and completes everything without acting, Indeed, the True Man is unaffected by the world of forms outside himself as well:

Indeed, unlike the sage, the True Man does not bother [0 keep his essence and spirit linked to his form .at all. Instead, his spirit is allowed to ro:un free:

"0

Things cannot orient (yi"g) him. ... Gre.ar swamps could burn, yet he would not get hot. The rivers could freext over, yet he would not be cold. Great thunder could rip apart mountains, yet he would not be abrmed. Greu winds could darken the sun, yet he would not be injured. (7.5b-6a)

He shares the same essence as the root of the great clarity and wanders at the borders of the minutesr regions. He possesses an essence, yer does not control (lhi) it; he possesses a spirit, yet does not move it.. .. He rests in the corners wichout crookedness and wanders in the wilds without form or enclosure. ... His movementS arc without form; his rest without embodiment, Existence is as if non-existence, life is as if death. Leaving and enrering are nO! differentiued. He employs ghom and spiriu (gwi lhtn). Lost in the immeasurable, entering into the non-separated, so that his dif· ferent forms succeed one another. Beginning and end are like a circle; no one can obtain his categories, This is the means by which the essence and spirit can ascend and draw near co rhe Way, Thus, it is where the True Man wanders. (7.6a-b) The voc.abulOiry here c1eOlrly reflecrs the .ascension Iiterarure discussed in Ch.apter s. The True Man wOInders without form or enclosure, employs ghosts and spirits, and his essence .and spirit .ascend. But, here again, the .au' thors appropriate the langu.age associated with the True Man .and place it within a generally Zhu.angzian cosmology. For eumple, the point about the True M.an is nOt that his spirit is liberated fro m the form but th.at the spirit rem.ains un.affected by the forms: ThUll, char the form inter:lC!:s bur the spirit has never been transformed is btcalUe one lUes that which does not transform to respond to rhar which does transform. A thousand a1ter.ltions and ten tholUand revolutions, and yet it has not yet begun co have a limit. That which transforms rerurns to rhe formless; that which does not transfo rm lives together with Heaven and Earth. (7.7a)

Here again we encounter vocabul.ary from the Zhuangzi, in this case, from Zhu.angzi's discussion of the shen WI-the divine man, But the .authors of the ]ingshen~ take this vocabul.ary f.ar more literally than did Zhuangzi. For Zhu:mgzi these were metaphors for the divine man's lack of dependence on things; here they are meant quite liter.ally: becOluse the primordial spirits oriented the cosmos, which wou1d later beget forms, one who em fullyembrOice the spirit is un.affected by the world of forms.

The forms are tr.ansformed, and anything that is JUSt form rerurns to the formless. But that which does not transform is eternal, like He.aven and E.anh-.and [his is the highest goal of the True Man, Thus, che True Man does not transcend He.aven and E.anh: his spirit lives together with them in the alignment initi.ally given by the spirits. He thus never rerurns to the formless, .and yet he is also not conrrolled by, or even .affected by, (he ch.anging forms between He.aven and Earth, In this sense, his spirit is never bound:

simibr claim can be found in "Quanyan," chapter foun«n of the Hw~jn~n:i,"He who can return to that which gavc birth 10 him ,och [hal it is as if he dOCI not yel have a form-Ihis penon we cill the Trw: Man, The True Man hal not yet begun 10 lCp.1ule fr01l1 lhe Great One" (I« Hw~'n~lIl i, 14.la),

When a tree dies, the vitality of its greenness !e.aves it. That which made the tree live i. not the tree, jun as that which fills the form is not the form, Therefore, that which generates life has never died, but that which it generates doe. die. That which

•

14, A

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fl'2OSfomu things has never been transformed. but thac which it rraruformed does transform. If one regards all under Heaven lighdy, men onc's spirit will not be bound. (' .12)

jing ying to describe the actions of these spirits~ I begin with the laner ques-

m:u

As with Zhu2Ilgzi. being liberated does not mean that one escapes but one accepu onc's fare. Although he ~srudics the teachers of no-death" (,.sb), me Troe Man's goal is nOf to avoid death but to reach the point at which me shifting of fo rms means nothing to him : Life is nO( sufficient to make hU will anxious , and death is not sufficient to darken his spirit. Whether contracting or cxj»nding. looking down or looking up. he em· braces his we (rni",) and yidds to turns. Misfortune and fortune, benefit and harm. a thousand a1tCr.atiOiU and ten thousand revolutions- how em they worry him! Such a man as this emhra(:CI purity and holds fut to essence. Like meliberation (jit) of the cicada or the snak e (from theif outer skins], he wmders (YO" ) in the great daricy. (,.8b)

The authors again employ language reminiscent of the ascension lirerarure. At first glana, for example, li~ration (jie) would appear to refer to the escape of the spirit from the form-exacdy the claim of the Shiwen. But in fact the metaphor points to a snake who stoughs off pans of his form according to me proper season- accepting the order of Heaven. The aurhors' point is that the True Man embraces his fate and is not concerned with death-o r immortality, Ultimately, therefore, libel'2rion for these authors carries II meaning slighdy different from that of rhe Shiwen but very similar to that of me ZbJUlngri: liberation refers not to the spiric leaving the form but co not allowing one's spirit to be concerned with forms. InscQd, and again as in the Zbu"ng:ti, the spirit of the True M.an simply follows the proper movement of me cosmO£ rather than being weighed down by a false concern with forms. It is as if che language of ascension has been embraced in order to defend a point of view found in che Zhwng:ti, T hus, the authors build on teXts like the "Neiye" and ·Xinshu· to develop meir understanding of the sage and on the ascension Iiterarure to develop their understanding of the True Man. But in both cases they reinterpret thiJ previous literarure within a generally Zhuangzian framework, The 'question chen becomes Why~ Why are they so concerned with re-re2ding this literarore through Zhuangzi~ And if the cosmology of chis chapter is baud in part on the Zhuang:ti, then why do spirits :l!ign the cosmOJ~ Zhuangzi certainly never talked about demiurges organizing the universe, So why are

such claims being advanced here~ And why do the authors use me words rion first. As we have seen, mae had become highly loaded terms by the early Han, For example, the First Emperor had claimed the ability to :l!ign (jing) [he universe, and the terms were appropriated by the ascension Iiterarure to describe me spirit journeys of humans. In this liten.rure, the spiric can traverse the universe, escaping the bounds of form and the restn.ints of this world.. T he aumors of the "Jingshen" chapter make a complex move within this debate. The panerns and alignment of the cosmos are set up by the primordia! spirits, who then became me cosmos itsdf. On the one hand, this means that the cosmO£ nwlj spirits. In the "Jingshen: these spirits are not traversing the alre2dy existing boumuries of me universe; they are aligning those boundaries. The claim, in other words, iJ that the cosmos needt spirits in order ro be properly aligned: me cosmos is organized by spirits, and the polirical order should be as well. Bu(, a( [he same time, the spirits did not align the cosmos through an act of will; rather, they :l!igned it properly. Thus, in contrast to the First Emperor's claim that he had aligned the cosmos according to his will, the spirits in the "Jingshen~ chapter obey a normative plan: spirits, if they are truly spirits, follow certain paths. SpiritS, in short, have the power to do what should ~ done. They do nor have the power to do what they wiJh: wind and rain, for example, are simply part of the spontaneous cosmos, not something controlled by spirits. Thus, me spirits are not entities that impose their will through a direct control of narural phenomena; they are, rather, highly refined '1i that sponuneously act as they ought. Humans are then defined as microcosnu of mis cosmos aligned by the spirits and as having spirit within themselves. The text calls on humans to cultivate themselves so as (0 become increasingly divine. The authors have developed an ingenious way for arguing the absolute centrality of the specific mode of self-cultivation that they are advocating. The aurhors used this framework to provide a fe -reading of both che sage and the True Man. In borh cases, the authors present their argumenrs within a generally Zhuangzian framework. Like the "Xinshu· chapters of the Cu,," ti, the -Jingshen" argues that the sage can become fully divine and gain a full understanding of the cosmos. H owever, unlike the "Xinshu~ chapters, the "Jingshen" argues that the conaequence of becoming divine is

,S.

,S,

ALIGNING AND OR I5NTING THB COSMOS

ALIGNING AND ORIBNTING THB COS M OS

that the uge accords flawlessly with the movements of this world instead of gaining control over them. And they provide
consequently any possibility of conflict, is denied. Hurt'Wls .:.tnd gods arc fi.illy linked and differ only in degree. of refinement. In the -Jingshen- chapter, humans arc fully able to ' become spirits and thus move in accord with the parterns of the cosmos. This cosmology was utilized to rethink the existing conceptions of divinizarion. The two major models involved a view of divinization either as a means of empowerment (e.g., the First Emperor's claim to be able to align the universe, or the daims of hum,IInS to be able to become spirits and gain control over nature) or .u a mC.:.tns of escaping the concerns of this world, and having one's spirit tr.lver~ the cosmos. These views did not go unopposed. O ne major critique called for subordination to the texruaJ authority of the earlier sages. Another is found in the chapters of the HUll inanzi analyzed here. Within the cosmologies pre~nred in me HUll immzi, it is possible ro gain control over n:.tunl phenomen:., but:. higher gnosis is possible. Control over natural phenomena is a lower stage of cultivation. Moreover, C.:.tch stage is :.chieved through self-cultivation, not:. m.utery of formulas. In the highest stage, the spirit is simply connected with the proper patterns of the universe, unaffected by shifts in forms :.nd unconcerned with controlling them. This is a Z huang%ian re-reading of :.scension: the highest form of transcendence is a spontancous connection with me patterns of the universe.

Conclusion As discussed in Chapter I, Paul Whe.:.trley .:.trgues that the notion of a pivot of the four qua.rrers represented an C.:.trly C hinese belief in the linkage of m.:.tn with the cosmos. Although I questioned the application of this .:.trgument to the Bronze Age, it does hold for rhe cosmology presented in the HUllinllnzi. According to me Boolr. of DocWmtnfS, the Duke of 5hao surveyed (Jing ying) the bnd before the construction of the city ofLuoyang in order to determine that the spirits .:.tcquiesced in this usc of the sire; here the spirits control natunl phenomena, and humans h.:.tve to appe.ue them. In the chapters of the HWllinllnzi discussed here. the distinction between humans and godt, and

This cosmology has several political impliC2tions. First, neither sagehood nor the state of being :. True M:.n is the prerog:.tive of the ruler. Anyone (:.n :.chieve either state through sclf-cultiv:.tion. Attainment of such a position would result in enormous autonomy from both the political order l5 and texruaJ :.uthority. Second, there is :.n inherent p.arrern to the universe that the ruler should follow whether he is striving to be :. s.age or a True Man. These HlUlinllrizi ch:.pters arc indeed calls for theomorphic rulership, but of a ndically different sort from the concepts of theomorphic rulership dominant at me Qin and Han coum. The :.urhors, therefore, have developed:. position that provides them a me.ans for criticizing sr.ate policy-the ruler is failing to accord with the proper p.1ttems of the cosmos-as well :.s for c!.aiming :.utonomy from any existing politic.al or textua.l :.uthority-anyone c:.n, with cultivation, pin :.cce55 to the p:.tterns and thus live flawlessly in h:.rmony with the cosmic or'5. Thil polm hal bun txplo...,d powc,nlUy by Grief Van~trbr:'gcn in her dilsenation, -rl~ HIl'/Naftt/ luJ

Llu An'. Claim 10 Moral AUlho,ity:

,86

ALIGN I NG AND OR I ENT I NG THE COSMOS

def. Humans are thus granted extraordinary powers, but chese powers entail subordination to the patterns of the cosmos. We can become spirits, and even ascend to (he heavens, but all we gain is the power to do what ought to

be done. The more humans refine themselves, the more they become the spirits in accord with the patterns of the cosmos. To claim that one hOlS achieved theomorphic powers and c;m control natural phenomena at will or chat one has mastered formulas char allow one to do chis is simply selfdc:lusion.

Bur even the self-deluded ate not without power. The political.argumenu found in the Huainlln:ti did not win Eavor Ole the court of Emperor Wu. Liu An, the Prince of Huain:m and the parron of the authors of the ten th.u bears wimess to his patronage, was charged with treason :md eventually committed suicide. The kingdom of H uainan was incorporated into the imperial system in In Be.

8

The sacrifices that order the world Divine Kingship and Human Kingship in the W estern Han

Following the destruction of the kingdom of Huainan, Emperor Wu enlarged the Han empire and created a new sacrificial system. Less chan a century later, however, over the course of a series of extraordinary COUrt debates, a group of ministers succeeded in eradicating significant portions of this sacrificial system and putting in irs place culrs to Heaven and Earth explicitly modeled on early Western Zhou practices described in the Srnmgmu. In this chapter, I tTace the history of these sacrificial systems and seek to understand what was :It stake as well as the significance of the final outcome. I begin by discussing the arguments of Dong Zhongshu, a minister at Emperor Wu's COUrt. I then turn to the emperor's new s:lcrificial system in order to undersrand why particular sacrifices came to be imbued with such significance. This section is based on the "Fengshan shu· chapter of Sima Q ian's Shiji, which attempts, among other things, to explicate the sacrificial system th:lt Emperor Wu inherired and developed. A close reading of this chapter allows us a glimpse:lt the various meanings that had become associated with these sacrifices and PUtS us in a position [0 understand the arguments of the ministers who successfully eradicated Emperor Wu's sacrificial system. I am in particular interested in cracing the ways in which these min· Luers, building on the ide:as of figures like Dong Zhongshu, successfully

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THE SACRIFICES TH AT ORDBR TH E W O R L D

THE SACR IFI CES THAT ORDBR T HB WORLD

reasserted :l. distinction between the human and the divine rulms. In shorr, in this chapter I focus on the shift in the Han ritual system from divine to human kingship. In Chapter I, I discussed the tendency Olmong sinologists to focus on sac· rifice as a gift-a do ut d(s arrangemem. This reading of sacrifice has a long pedigree in anthropology; a notable example is [he work of H enri Hubert and Marce! Mauss, who discussed sacrifice as " form OENcommunicarion be. tween [he sacred and profane realms. I Although attacking Hubert ;lnd Mauss's model as being inappliC2ble to this or thar culture h:.l.s become something of a cottage industry of late,2 at least a porrion of their theo rythat focused on the transformation of the human and divine spheres through the sacrifice-may provide a compelling way to approach aspects of u rly Chinese sacrificial practice. M y argumen t is in pare inspired by Valerio Valeri's reading of Huben: and Mauss. Ramer than communication and gift giving. Valeri emphasizes the agonistic elements underlying sacrifice: "All fundamemal relations involved in sacrifice are permeated by the spirit of comest: not only interhuman rei:.ttions, but also relations between humans and gods and between animals and humans. ~J Valeri describes H awaiian sacrificial practice in terms of a conflict: "Thus the desacraliza t ion of narure implies the sacralization of man. Perhaps, then, it is possible to follow Kojeve when he refo rmulates H egel's interpretation of sacrifice by writing that in th is ri te 'il £aUt .. _ supprimer une partie du d ivin pour sanctifier I'homme.' "4 Hawaiian sacrificial practice, in o ther words, involves an agon between humans and gods, in which rhe king arrempts to divinize himself while ell:orcising the gods from nature and thus making nature avaii:.tble for human appropriation.

The clail1Ul of imperial deificatio n discussed in C hapter 6 can be read in terms of these provocative formulations: the formation of imperial practice in early China involved an attempt to appropriate divine powers and ultimately transform the ruler into a god. In this chapter, I trace the debates that developed &om about 140 to 30 BC o n the nature, efficacy, and significance of sacrifice. I analyu some of the competing sacrificial practices employed during this period. explore the concerns behind these practices. and srudy the h istOrical implications of the choices made. Throughout, as we will see, the issues of agon and transformation became recurrent topics of d ebate, as several figures disputed imperial practices of appropriating divine powers and attempted to restore the d istinction between humans and gods.

N

Hubert and M~un. $..crifiu, p. 97. For critiques of ,he Hubert ~nd Mauss model trom the perlpccne ralnu- with the sacri6ce ,hw serving to s;acr:!.lm: the pro(:.ne. For urly Chlna. however, ,his would no, rule out the modd:.aI I ha~ argued in this book. continuity W.al by no munl an ;wumption in urly China, and certain sacrificial modcu did ind«d posit such a disrinc· tion tha, was ,hen 10 be overcome. J. Valeri. "W~d Victim.: p. 1°9. 4. Valeri. King>hip aM S«rificr, p. 8J. I.

1.

The Sacrifices of the Sage: Dong Zhon gshu D o ng Zhongshu, who was active during the early pare o f Emperor Wu's reign, was a scholar of the Spring ana Autumn Annals, and his life's work was to follow what Dong thoughr were the principles laid out by Confucius in the text. Like Lu Jia, Dong Zhongshu appropriated cosmological argume nD in o rder both to advance h is argument and to critique the coure practices of t he day. My interpretation of Dong d iffers consid erably from that of H einer Roctz, who argues thar Dong Zhongshu

discards the rmonal view of nacure which Zhou philosophy had devdoped and Xunzi had brought to completion. Nature, for Xunzi a sphere with its own invarilinked with man by any sympathetic ties, becomes the arena of cosmic judgment. It supplantS the ·sdf· before which the Zhou Confucian had [0 justify his acrions. T hus Confucianism pays for irs rise to nate orthodoxy tailored to the superstition of the powerful wirh a double regression: Ethically as wdl as cognirivdy it falls back on a levd which the axial age philosophers had once overcome.s ant rules and nor

I disagree with almost every one of these points. I argued in C hapte r 4 t hat Xunzi does indeed see humans as normatively performing a crucial role in generating order in t he cosmos, and in this sense, D ong Zhongshu's arguments are quite closely related to Xunzi's. Moreover, the cosmology of Dong Zhongshu hardly represents a "regression" to the su perstitious of rhe COUrt. D ong Zhongshu certainly did not represenc state orrhodoll:Y under Emperor ,. Ro~n:, Collfoui.lll Erbi(, Qf thr A1
:1)1.

My il1terp~Ul ionl of Dong

ha~

bun

,,0

".

THB SACItlF ICBS THAT ORDB R THE WORLD

THB SACRIFICBS THAT ORDBR THB WORLD

Wu, and the cosmology he presented W2S, among other things. a critique of the views prominent at coun . These concerns can be seen clearly in ont of Dong's major concerns, rain magic. A!> Dong's contemporary Sima Qian described him:

ii of humans rises, the yin ii of Haven and Eanh also properly responds to it and rises. Their way 11 one. As for those who are dar on this, if they desire to bring (VIi

When me current ruler [Emperor WuJ came [0 the throne, (Dong ZhongshuJ be·

Rain is nOt" controlled

came minister ofJiangdu. He used the alterations of din-seers and ilTegularities from the Spring .nd Allfllmn """au to infer the means by which yin and rOUlg interact roo gether. Therefore. when ledting rain. he would block yang and" rdeue yin; when stopping rain, he WQuld do the oppo£ite. While practicing in this one snrc. he al. waY' ohained what he wanted. 6

yang. lherefore, bringing (Wi) rain is not shell. Delusions about shen arise because (the rain's] pattern (Ii) is subtle and mysterious" (13-)b-..a). Every·

The study of the Spring ana .AII/umn .AnnalJ provided Dong the ability not only to interpret omcrul but also ro control the weather. The cosmology that underlay this practice is fleshed OUt in the -ronglei xilngdong. chapter 57 of Dong's Chllnqill fan/II. !u have many others, M

Needham analyzes [his cha pter as an example of Chinese correlative thinking? But, since it should be clear by now that correlative thinking was not an asswnption in early C hina, we should instead read the text as a series of claims, and our goa.! should be to understand what [he author is trying ro argue. The chapter closely corresponds (Q the Shijts description o f Dong Zhongshu's views, and it seems reasonable to read it as a product of eirher Dong Zhongshu himself or one of his disciples.' The author argues that humans can in fact exercise tremendous power over the narura.! world, bur this power does not mimic, o r even rival that of the shtll - for it has nothing to do with J,rn at

all Rather, it is based. on the resonance of yin and yang:

since like attraca like. the author argues. yin attraca yin and yang attracts )'mg. Moreover, this correlative system is developed solely in terms of the in· teractions of Heaven and man: sMlI do not figure in the discussion at all Since both Heaven and nun are composed of yin and yang. one's ability to affect the narural world is defined by the degree to which one can control yin and yang so as to influence the yin and yang in the enema.! world: Haven hu yin and yang; humuu also havt yin and yang. When the yin ii of Haven and Eanh rue, rht yin i i ofhullUfU responds to it and rises. When tht yin

•

6. 5mjl". la •. )la7- 13.

7. Nttdham.Scit"" ~nJ Civm'~ljO" j" o,j"Q. pp. 18I- h. I. oS« the c:xcdlem diKunion of thit th~p(eT in Queen, From o,ro"klt /0 CA"o", pp. no~,. Queen arguu

that the chaprcr can plaulibly Ix uc:ribcd 10 Dong Zhonphu hjmJdf.

~) rain. they will activate [he yin so u ro m.ake (he yin rise; if they desire 9 the rain, they will activate the yang in order (0 m.akt tht yang rise.

by Jhtn;

(0 stOp

it is a product of the interaction of yin and

thing can be masured in terms of yin and yang. and, moreQyer, this explains how humans can affect the natura.! world: they do not need to contTol or become sMn, they simply need (0 understand these basic principles and undergo the self-cultivation necess;lry to urilize them. Dong Zhongshu thus follows Xunzi in seeing riruab as not sMn. But they are also not JUSt wrn: they do work. Dong Zhongshu is reworking rain sacrifices much as the Xid Wllan reworked divination. As in the Xid wllall, the reworking involyes a claim about the forma.! patterns o f the cosmos: divination and sacrifice work, but they work because they link human acrions to powers more primordial than the spirits. But. for Dong Zhongshu. these powers are active agents. Thus, the movements of the phenomena (WII ) are not spontaneous: ~W hen things activate each other without form, then it is called spontantous (:;i rail). In faCt, it is not spontaneous. There is something thac is causing it co be so. Things certainly have substances causing them; but what is causing them is without form" ( I ) ...a). For mis aumor. howtver, the causative agent is not the shell but the yin and yang. Dong Zhongshu thus denies the efficacy o f shen and instead proposes a model based on the interactions of Heaven and nun. with human power deriving from self·cultivation. Humans do indeed have power Oller the natural world, but only because of t heir proper interactions with Heaven, not through any supposed abiliry to coerce-or achieve the powers of-sMn. The same principle of interaction between yin and yang explains omens: "If a [hearch or a king is about to arise, auspicious omens will appear first. And when he is about ro perish, inauspicious portents appear first. Things of the same category swnmon each other" (13.3b). Like Lu Jia, Dong Zhongshu supportS omenology, but only by defining it as a product of the natura.! inrtractlons of tht unillerse.

'9'

THE SACR IFIC BS THAT ORDIlR THE WORLD

TH E SAC IUFICE S TH"T ORDER THB WORLD

Accordingly, Dong is able to cbim a complete understanding of the emergence of blessings. disasters, and misfortunes:

also like Lu Jia, he wanted ro define the proper way in which human power could be exercised in the world. The main tool that Dong Zhongshu utilized for this was the interplay of yin and yang. the twO forces of the universe: "If a king desires ro undertake an aerion, it is fitting for him to seek his clues in Heaven. The greamess of the way of Heaven resides in yin and yang. Dong Z hongshu's argument in these memorials is that statecraftincluding omenology and sacrifice-should be based on yin and yang. which is also the way of Heaven. II For Dong. H eaven both generated and aligned [he cosmos:

It is not only the 'Ii of yin and yang that can be advanced or withdrawn according to category. Even the production of misforrones. disasters, and blessings is also because of this. T here is always something [hilt first makes it :irise. and things, responding [0 it by kind, are activated. (13.4a)

Dong Zhongshu uses a simiur argument to explain why me sages of the past were able to understand and articub.te theM; princip';' of interaction: -Therefore, jf he who is keen of hearing. deu of sight. sagely. and divine (jhen) looks and listens within, his words become clear and sagel( (1).4:1.). The claim here follows directly from the overall argument of the chapter: something arises, and things respond. Accordingly, a sage should rule by looking within himself. Human divinity (men) thus resides not in gaining me powers of spirits: if om understands the proper processes of the cosmos, one will realize that the ability to conrrol natural phenomena depends on cultivating oneself. The essay closes with a story from the ShangJhu dawuan about an omen that preceded the rise of the Zhou dynasty.

'93

""

I have heard that Heaven is the ancestor of the myriad things. Therefore, it completdy covers, embrues. ;rnd envdops them. and nothing is treafed diffetendy. It es· tablished the sun and moon, wind and rain, to harmonize them; if aligned (jng) yin and yang, hot and cold. to complete them. (Hg"shll.56.2515) Heaven gave birth to the myriad things and then organized the cosmos ro nourish [hem. The alignmellt (jing) of me cosmos, then, is a product neither of humans nor of sages: it was accomplished by Heaven. The sages used this alignment:.lS their guide:

At the rime when the Zhou wu about to arise, great red birds dutching seeds of grain g:uhewi atop the kinis palace. King Wu rejoiced, and the various ministers rejoiced. The Duke ofZhou said.: ·Ai~i, aizai! Heaven is showing this to encourage us: H e wu 2fraid they would rdy upon it. ([H.a)

Therefore, the sages modeled thenudves on Heaven and established the Way. They cherished extensively and without selfishness, disseminated virtue and displayed humaneness to enrich [the people], and established ptOpriety and Set up riroals to guide them. (Hg ,uhu, 56.2515)

The Duke ofZhou wanted to prevem the king and his other ministers from reading the omen as an indication that Heaven would support the king. Instead, the Duke of Zhou argued, the king needed to respond to the omen properly. One cannot rely on Heaven; rarher, one must respond to its promptings. The text is thus an exhortation for human activity in the world. Not only do humans have the power to summon natural occurrences, but they in nct must do so if order is to prevail. That Dong Zhongshu saw such advice as being directly applicable to his own time is dear from a series of memorials he submitted at the beginning of Emperor Wu's reign calling on the emperor ro follow the pri'lciples laid out by Confucius in the Spring and Autumn Annals. The Annals, in Dong'. reading. was authored to guide humans in following the Heavenly way. Like Lu Jia, Dong Zhongshu was interested in defining (he relationship between humans and Heaven through cosmological arguments, and

This .rgumenr is reminiscent of that given by Confucius, but Dong takes it • step further: the sages' modeling of memselves on Heaven was itself mandated by Heaven. Humans receive the mandate from Heaven. They are certainly superior in the way they differ from the other fornu of life. Within they possess the relarions of father and son, dder and younger brothet. Outside they possess the propriety of ruler and minisrer. upper and lower. When gathering together. they possess the arrays of se· niority and age. Bright is the culrure (wen) with which they meet each other; peaceful is the kindness with which they rdate to each orher. This is why humans are so noble. (Hgnmll.56.2516)

.0. H~".bM .-S6.1S01;

hereinafter ci,tci in the lUI .

u. Portion. of the remainder of thi. "clion ue [run from my "Following the Commands o(Huven: The Not ion ofMlng In Early China:

'"

THB SACRIP I CES T HA T ORDllil THE WORLD

THB SACRIFICBS THAT ORDBR THB WORLD

What is distinctive about humans and makes them the most noble of erearunes is [bar HC2ven hu mandated them to have hierarchy and disrincrions.

and thereby rectifiCll the myriad people; he rectil1Cl1 the myriad people and thereby rectifitl the four quarters, Once the four qlart'en are rectified, no one, distant or near, would dare not unice with the rectification, and there would be no bad f to COfTUpt those within, BecallSe of this, yin and yang will mix, and the wind and rain will be cimdy. The variow fornu of life will be harmoniud, and the myriad people will proIper, the five grains will ripen. and the grasses and trees will thrive. All within Heaven and Earth will be moistened and greatly abundant and splendid. Everyone within the four Seall will hear of the flourishing vinue and come to serve. AU the things of blessing and all the auspiciow omens that can be summoned will arrive. and the kingly w.:l.y will be achieved. (H"lIshv, s6,asO)

'94

Moreover, they appropriate: the rest of the narunl. world for their benefit: They grow the five grailU to feed menudves. silk and hemp to dothe themsdves. the six dOmelldc animili to nourish themsdvcs; they yoke OJ[aI. and hameJJ hones, emnuc leopards and nge tigers. This is how they obnin the numinousness of Haven. and why they an: more lofty clan other things. Therefore Confucius said, ~Pu for the fUtUre of Haven and Earth. man is the: most lofty: (Hanshu.56.:l516)

The appropriation and domesric2tion of nature is the means by which humans ohtain the nummousness of Heaven. Ultimately. one un come to accord with the patterns of the wo rld: If one is illuminated about the n.:nu re of heaven. one undentanw onadf to be more noble than other things. Only if a person understanru himsdf to be more noble than other things does he understand humaneneu and propriety. Only ifhe understanru humaneness and propriety does he value ritual and modulation. Only if he values ritual and modulation dotl he reside in goodness. Only if he resides in goodness will he ddight in according with the patterlU (Ii). Only if he ddights in acco rding with the p.:l.(terns can he be called.:l. gencleman. Therefore, ConfucillS said, «If you do not understand the nundate, you are without that with which to become.:l. gemleman.« This is the meaning. (H~,uhll, S6..:I.5J6)

As with Lu Jia, there is a teleology here in which Heaven mandates that humans appropriate narure, and by doing so, humans come inco accord with the patterns of the cosmos. Whereas the First Emperor, in his inscriptions. claimed the ability [0 pattern the cosmos, Dong Zhongshu is arguing that Heaven has mandated a set of p;merns with which man must accord. And. unlike me -Jingshen- chapter of the Huai"a"ri, which makes a comparable claim, Dong presenu the appropriation o f nature as one of the crucial as· peru of according with these patterns. H eaven, [hen, set up the cosmos for the benefit of man. Narure was so made that man can appropriate it and thereby thrive, The implicacion is that the cosmos will be nor properly ordered unless humans make it an object of appropriation. And this, indeed, is a crucial part of understanding Heaven's mandate. • And th e cosmos itself requires that humans bring order to the world. Therefote, the ruler rectifltl his mind and thereby rectifitJ his COUrt; he recrine. hi. COUrt and thereby recrine. the hundred official.; he rectine. the hundred official.

The ruler's rectification of himself inaugurates the orde ring and harmonizing of his court, the people, and ulrimarely [he natural world. The ruler thus controls the wind and rain, but only by properly foUowing [he mandate given to him. Thus, by culriv.:l.ting himself, th e ruler brings virtue co the myriad forms on earth and gains the support of divine powers: Humaneness, ptopriety, ritual, knowledge, and sinceriry are the w.:l.y of five conSCanfl, They are what the king mllSt culrivilte. When these nve are cultivated. he will therefore receive Heaven's favor and enjoy the numinosity of the ghOstS and spiritS, Hill vinue will sptead beyond the boundaries, reaching to the myriad fomu of life. (H.. nshv, s6.l;OS) Heaven therefore requires a human sage to complete the process of ordering. H eaven gives che mandate, but a sage must pur ir intO practice. This is true not only for rhe cosmos as a who le but also for the people: Heaven', command is known u the mandate; if the mandate is not (used by] a sage, it will not be put into practice. One's substance is called narure; if natUre iI not transformed through education. it cannot be completed. Hu man duires are called the disposition ('iillg); if the disposirion is nor standardi:ted and regulated (4111 tIN), it will not be modulated (fie). It is for this reallon thar a king above is .:I.ttentive to upholding the intent of Heaven so u to accord with the mandate; below he endeavo rs to clarify, educate, and transform the people so as to complete their narure; and he correctS the appropriateness of the laws and nandarru and diuinguishes the hierarchy of upper and lower in order to restrain their desires. When he hu accomplished these three, then the great basis is established. (NGllshll, S6 ..:I.S JS)

Sagely acrion, again, is neceuary for Heaven's commands to be realized.

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THE SACRIFICSS THAT ORDEIl THB WORLD

THB SACRIF I CBS THAT ORDI!R THI! WORLD

As a consequence, the sage is granted extraordinary powers: not only does the order of the n.arura! world depend on the sage, bur even one's life span depends on his rule.

ars trained in the classics can advise rhe ruler, for only they can correctly interpre t omens. Bur why, if Confucius was such a sage, did he not found a new dynasty~ The answer again lies with me mandate. Like Mencius, Dong emphasizes that Heaven confers the mand.!.rei one cannot acquire it through human effort. "I have heard mat the king who has been charged by Heaven invariably possesses something that human effort could not summon (thi) and yet it arrives nonetheless. This is the rally of the receipt of the mandate~ (Hanshu, 56.2500). Confucius, therefore, whatever his sagely qualities, could not become a ruler:

I have heard (h::1.[ the m::mdace is the command of Heaven, narure is the substance one is born with, and disposition is human desire. As for dying young or living long. being humane or licentious: once it is molded and compleced, it cannot be purified or beautified. Order :md disorder arc generared: [herefore things are unequal. Con-

fucius said: "The virtUe of a gentleman is like rhe wind; the virtue-of a petty man is like the grass. If the wind blows above, (che grass] will invariably bend.~ Thus, when Yao and Shun practiced virtUe, the people were humane and long-lived: and when Jie and Zhou practiced oppression, rhe people were licenooUli and died young. If what is above transfornu whar is below, what is below will follow what is above. This is lilc:e day on a potter's wheel; only .1 porrer can form it. Or like metal in a mold; only a smith cw cast it. (Hanshu, 56.2501)

Both the humm and the natural worlds depend on me sages' correctly utilizing and putting into practice the mmdate of H eaven. For Dong Zhongshu, as fo r Lu Jia, the last sage was Confucius. And for Dong Zhongshu, the crucia.! act of Confucius was to compile the Sprillg alld Autumll AllllalJ: ~Confucius created the Sprillg alld Autumll Anlla/s, above calculating it to the Heavenly way, below making it substmtive with the fundamentals of man; comparing it with antiquity, examining it with the present~ (Hanshu, 26.25(5). Since Confucius followed H eaven, the Sprillg alld Autumll An lla~ matches the alignment of Heaven md Earth: "The great un ity of the Sprillg alld Autumn Allna~ is the enduring alignment Uillg) of Heaven md Earth, the connecting propriety of the past and present" (Hall5hu, 56.2.52.3). Since the text ma tches the alignment of me cosmos, it can be used in omenology: hidden in the text is the key to interpreting the cosmos md thus [ 0 guiding human action. For example, Dong Zhongshu is said to have attributed a flood recorded in the Sprillg alld Autumn Annalj to the behavior of a COUrt lady; ~Dong Zhongshu took this to mean that the consort Ai Jiang was licentious and diso rderly, acting COntrary to the yin qi. Therefore there was a grear flood" (Hanshu, 27A.1339). Since the cosmos is based on the interplay of yin and ymg. similar things amacr: yin will amact yin, md yang wiU attract yang. 1 Like Lu Jia, therefore, Dong Zhongshu is arguing that the classics- for Dong the Spring and Autumll Annah in particular-provide me principles for understanding omens properly, Here, tOO, the implication is thar only sehol-

'97

Confucius said: "The phoenix does not arrive, the River does nor show fonh rhe diagram. I :l1l1 at my end!"u Self-pity can summon (zhi) these things; bur because he held a low posirion, he was not able to summon them. (Hanshu, S6.2503) If, howeve r, H eaven grantS one the posidon of ruler, then one has the power to summon the basis for order: Now, Your Majesty, your noble posirion is as rhe Son of Heaven, your fonune encompasses the four sea!!. You reside in the position from which you can summon, you control the authority to summon, and you possess the resources that cw be used to summon. Your actions are lofty, and your kindness deep. You r knowledge is brighr, wd your intentions splendid. You cherish rhe people, and are fond of the officers. You cw be called a proper ruler. And yet Heaven and Eanh have nor yet responded, wd auspicious omens have not arrived. Why is rhis~ Because education and trwsformation have not been esrablished, wd the myriad people have nor been rectified. (HAnmu, 56.2.5"03) Dong Zhongshu thus reasserts the Mencian argument that one's position determines one's ability to summon power. According to Dong. none of the H an rulers-those in position to bring order to the world- has succeeded in summoning the auspicious omens. Confucius modeled himself on Heaven, but H eaven did not grant him the position from which he could summon [he omens; the Han rulers have been granted such a position. but they have failed to model themselves on Heaven. The immediate solution to this problem is, by the way that Dong has set up the argume nt, clear: the Han rulers need to follow the principles laid out in the Spring and Autumn Annak But there is a deeper problem with Dong's argument. Why, if H eaven mandates who will have power and if H eaven

",

'"

THB SACRIFICBS THAT ORDBR THE WORLD

THB SACRIFICBS THAT ORDBR THB WORLD

needs a proper person to Clrry our the mandate and thereby bring order to the cosmos, did Heaven nor put Confucius in power.' Why wait morc than two centuries and then allow the Qin and Han to take power-particwarly if all that wu required was simply for the ruler to follow the principles bid out by Confucius! The question is quitt similar to thac posed by Mcncius: Why is it that uges arc not given che mandate by Heal/cn! But Dong's response is unique. Mcncius aruwcts chis question with a simple St2tcment of resign.uion-one must accept the mandate and attempt to do so without resenrment. Dong

terns in the natura] world and then to make rhe natural world work along t hose lines. In other words. the natural wo rld will not necessarily function properly without human guidance. This argument. then. supportS human power. Nature needs humans in order to reach its most perfect srate. Or. pur differently. nature cannot reach its potentiality for order without human intervention. Dong Zhongshu's solution to the tensions sun in Mencius is [0 grant humans extraordinary powers over the cosmos. He denies the potential for tension between sages and Heaven that Mencius posited. Whereas Mencius granted divine powers to man and saw a porenrial conflict with Heaven. Dong Zhongshu underlines the proper hierarchy of humans and Heaven. Humans must follow patterns. By doing so. they can exercise power over the world: they can control the rain and create the proper harmony in the world. Dong Zhongshu's articulation of this position serves to deny the tensions thar pervade the cosmology of Mencius. Heaven is an agent within this cosmology. but Heaven does not sometimes disrupt the moral patterns thar should be guiding humanity. H eaven is equated with the patterns, and the only issue for Dong Zhongshu is whether the sages follow these Heavenly patterns and thereby bring order to the world. Accordingly. if there is a discrepancy between the patterns of Heaven and the function ing of the natural or human worlds. the responsibility lies squarely with the ruler. jt is the ruler who must impose me panerru of Heaven on the human and natural worlds. But for some reason. Heaven no longer grants the mandate to sages as it did in the rime of Yao. S hun. and Yu; sages tend now to be ministers. not rulers. This may not be ideal. but. in Dong's view. it also need not result in a lack of o rder. It simply means that ministers must be properly trained in the classics so that they can guide rulers. In other words. the fact that rulers are nor sages simply requires an institutional response. The implication of this is that the bmed notion of humans and Heaven existing in harmony-a view so often attributed to Dong Zhongshu-was not an assumption at all. Ramer. it was a response to the political events of the time and an alternative to the vision proffered by Mencius almost twO cenruries before. And. unlike the authors of the Hilainanzi chapters. Dong Zhongshu is proclaiming the absolute nece~ity of accepting tradirions handed dow n from the sages-both sacrificial acts and the texts of Confucius,

instead offers an insritutioll21 fe.sponse: although Confucius was not granted t he kingship, he did author the Spring flrla Autu",,, Annals in order to guide humans in foUowing the Heavenly way. The ruler should therefore est2blish a fonnal sy5tem in which people are trained to undemand the alignment of the cosmos and to guide the ruler accordingly. This is, in a sense, an institutionalization of the degeneration implied in the M~cills and preunted in the Xic; milan. The implicit claim here appears to be that rulers ar this point need trained scholars to guide t hem: Confucius understood the alignment of the cosmos, and scholars of the textS composed or edited by Confucius can guide the ruler properly. Overall, Dong Zhongshu has therefore defined both divination and sacrince as necessary, but the purpose of such acts is nor ro learn o r influence the will of the divine. Rather, rhe goal is to place humanity properly within the cosmos and thereby ensure the proper functioning of that cosmos. Dong Zhongshu was every bit as interared in influencing natura] phenomena as were, for example, the masters of formulas. But his cosmological claims were designed ro present a view of the relationship between humans and nature different from both the instrumental and the agonistic conceptions of the relation between humans and gods prevalent at COUrt. Dong Zhongshu's goal was to articulate a cosmology in which the cosmos required human action-defined according to the traditions of Confucius-in order to function properly. In this specific sense. Dong Zhongshu's cosmology, despite its incorporation of so much Han terminology. repudiates the sortS of arguments found in the Xi,; milan in f...vor of elements of earlier Confucian th~ught. For Dong Zhongshu. the goal for humans is not to replicare the parterns of an existing natural world but to cause the natura] world to function properlythat is. to do as Heaven requires. The sages are to discover the proper pat-

TH B SAC IlIFICBS THAT OROBI!. THE WORLD

THB SACRI FICBS THAT O R DER T H B WO R LD

The overall argument il t hla quire similar ro rh;![ ofLu Jia: like Lu Jia. Dong Zhongshu presents humans 2S playing a crucw role in bringing order

then held an audience for the feudal lords. Every five years he made an inspection tour of t he Five Mounruru beginning with Mount Tai in t he east, where he would .sacrifice ro H eaven• .sacrifice from afar to the mountains and rivers. and meet with the feudal lords. H e would then travel to the other four mountains (to the south. west. north, and center). This .sacrificial system. based on a feudal political arrangement, continued, according to Sima Q ian. with some variations, until the rise of 2n alternative system unu de r the Qin. According to Sima Qian. Yu, Shun's successor and the founde r of the Xia dyn:ury. continued Shun's sacrificial practice. But problems became apparent in the fourteenth generatio n: "Yu accorded with this. After fourteen generations, ir came to the reign of Oi Kongjia. He turned to iicentiousnes.s and wu fond of spirits. The spirits we re angered, 2nd the twO dragons left(18.13s6).The Xia fell three generations later. A similar structure characterizes Sima Qian's present2tion of the Shang dynasty. Two rulers are singled OUt. The fi rst is Oi Taiwu. O ne night a mulberry grew in his courtyard. Although this caused great alarm. his minister Yi Zhi argued: ~Evil portents cannot overcome virrue.~ O i Taiwu then cultivated his virtue, 2nd t he mulberry died. Fourteen generations lacer, a decline set in. But Oi Wuding arose and restored the dynasty. A bad portent appeared under Wuding as well, and Wuding wu abrmed. But his minister Zu J i uid: ~Cultivate virtue: Wuding did so, and his reign was thus long· lasting and peaceful. Five generations later, however, Oi Wuyi "treated the spiriu with contempt- and was killed. The dyn:uty fell three generations bret (18.13S6). S ima Qian sums up his argument rhus far: -From [his it can be seen that. at t he beginning [of 2 dynasry] there is alW2YS reverence and respect, but later it deterioutes intO disrespect and contempt· (l!. 1)S6-S7). Overtly, this is a simple reference to t he dynastic cycle: a dyn:uty begins in virtue and ends in vice. But Sima Qian has set up this claim in a specific way. Virtue is based here on the behavior of the ruler 2nd involves. among o ther things, proper reverence for spirits. Virtue, Sima Q ian argues, overrides even b2d portents sent from the spirits. And vice, so to speak, involves improper reverence, an impropriery that can take the form of either being overly fond of the spirits o r trearing t hem with contempr.

)00

to the cosmos, and like Lu J12. Dong Zhongshu emphasizes the: importance of following the rraditions of the sages. Bur unlike Lu Jia. Dong Zhongshu does not borrow the langu:.ge of ascension and diviniurion in order to make these poinu. On the connary. Dong opposes such language. To a fir grater degree than Lu ) 12. Dong Zhongshu opposed the imperial system and its

theomorphic claims.

The W Fengshan shu· Chapter ofSim2 Qian Although Dong Zhongshu's recommendations for employing specialists in [he classics at court" were accepted by Emperor Wu. his cosmological notions 2nd his idea on sacrifices and omenology were no(. In order to trace the developme nt of the Han sacrificial system and to understand why particular sacrifices came to be imbued with a particular significance, we must turn to the ~ Fengshan shu~ chapter of Sima Q ian's Shiji. B Sima Qian was rhe coun hisroria n during the reign of Emperor Wu. and the chapter is in part a critique of t he emperor's sacrificial system. Emperor Wu played a major role in consolidating imperial rule in C hina. M part o f his poHdcal program. rhe emperor decided ro undertake {he feng and Jhtm sacrifices-sacrifices (har symbolized the legitimacy of a dynasry. Sima Qian's chapter places this decision within the entire hisrory of culric acriviry in China. M many comment:uors have pointed OUt, Sima Qian's 14 goal was to criticize Wu's decision. However. thete is much more of interest in the chapter than jun this criticism. As I will uy ro argue. the chapter, if read carefuUy, gives us a unique and suggestive glimpse of some of t he views at COUrt concerning sacrifices and thus provides crucial dues for aplieating the later debares that led to the parrial eradication of Emperor Wu's sacrificial system. Early in the chapter. Sima Qian quotes t he -Sh un dian- chapter of the Shangshu, which d iscusses the sacrificial system of Shun. one of the early sage-kings. Shun is described as sacrificing to the higher gods at his capital and sacrificing from afar to the mountains, rivers. and various fipirits. He

I). Portionl of Ih;. ~d I~ ensuing J«fion a", laken /Tom my "Determining {he P().Iilion of Heaven and Eanh: 14. For a full diKuuion of {hil, lee dUpi'er s of my TM Am~NltllCt ofC¥t~lio".

'S. Shiji. "FenS-han 11m;

~a.llSS-s6:

hereinafter cited in the: lerr.

THB SACRIFICBS THAT ORDBR THB WORLD

lO'

With this as his frame, Sima Qian rurns next ro the rise and fall of me

Zhou dynasty. He begins by quoting from [he Zhouguan, portS


[eX( ch.at pur-

to explicate the ritual sYStem of the Zhou dynasty:

The ZhouguQn nys: "When the winter solstice arrives, sacrifice [0 Heaven at the southern suburb in order to welcome the coming of the longer day. When the summer solstice arrives, sacrifice to the spirics of [he Ean:h. At both tUe musk and dancing. and the spirits can thereby be obtained and brought into ritual. The Son of

THE SACRIFICES THAT OR D E Il THIl WOIlLD

lOl

Some say thilt from ancient times, becawe the region ofYong is so high, it was a site for divine illumination. Altars were therefore erected for suburban sacrifices to the higher gods, and [he sacrifices ro all rhe spirits were amassed there. Since it was so used in the time of Huangdi, even rhough it was [he waning of the Zhou, it could again be used for rhe suburban sacrifices, However, because such words cannOt be read in any of the classics, scholars do not foUow them. (18.[]S9) Defenders of rhe Yong s:acrifices .argued that even though the Zhou had not

Heaven sacrifices to me &mous mountains and great rivers under Heaven. The Five Peaks he regards as his ministers, the Four Waterways as his feudal lords. The feudal lords sacrifice to ,he famous mountains and great rivers within their fiefdonu:

yet fallen, the antiquity of the Yong altars made their "re-instirution" by the Qin acceptable. However, Sima Qian is dearly calling into question the antiquity of the sacrificial system at Yong and casting into doubt such claims of

(18.11S7)

legitimacy. Bur he is also pointing out that this new form of sacrificial practice was based on a particular set of daims concerning Huangdi. As I have argued elsewhere, (6 Huangdi had come to be associated during the late

The Zhou is thus presented as continuing. with minor variations, the same ritual system as Shun. The later decline of the Zhou is then connected to the rise of the Qin. MFourteen generations after the Zhou conquered the Yin, (he generarions gradually dedined, the rites and music were discarded, and the feud.a1lords acted on their own" (2.8.1358). It was in this context that Duke Xiang ofQin was enfeoffed. Sima Qian thus presents Qin as emerging in a period when the feud.a1lords were usurping the power of the Zhou. The ensuing discussion is devoted to the emergence of a new sacrificial system in the Qin, a system mat re.lched its zenirh under Emperor Wu. The first step occurred soon .lEter the enfeoffment. Since me state of Qin was in the far west, Duke Xiang created.ln ".llur of the west," at which sacrifices to the White God, the god of the west, were held (28.1358). No Sima Qian .lrgues elsewhere: When Duke Xiang of Qin was enfeoffed as a lord, he made a western altar for use in sacrificing to the higher gods. The ~nning of Qin's usurparion is dear to see. The Liji says: "The Son of Heaven makes offerings to Heaven and Earth. while the lords of the States make offerings to the famous moumains and great rivers within their domains." (15.685) Qin's first sacrificial act, Sima Qian implies, was a usurpation of royal privilege. Sixteen years later, Duke Wen of Qin had a dream, whicK his historian Dun interpreted as a sign from the higher gods. Duke Wen thereupon constructed an altar at Yong (:18.1358). Sima Qian explains the rationalization for such sacrifices:

Warting States and early H an with centralized statecraft. And, as we saw in Chapter 6, Huangdi was the main figure invoked to legitimate the Qin.:.l.Ild, later, H.:.l.Il-s:acrificial system. Over me next several cencuries, the rulers of Qin institured sacrifices at Yong to the gods of me other three directions as well-presumably as a pan: of an increasing claim ro universal dominance (28.1360, 1364). The most impolT.lnt Qin $.:.l.crifices, [hen, came to consist of the offe rings at Yong to the four gods-the white, green, yellow, and red gods-symbolizing Qin control ove r the land (28,1376). During this process, me capital of Qin was moved to Yong. Meanwhile, we are told, the Zhou continued to decline: At the same rime (as Confucius], Chang Hong wed formulas (jiJng) to serve King Ling of the Zhou. None of the feudal lords paid homage a[ the Zhou COUrt, and the power of the Zhou w:u limited. Chang Hong thereupon clarified the affairs of ghOstS and spirits and hung up the head of a wildcat and shot arrows at it. The wildcilt head symbolized the feudal lords' not coming to COUrt. (Chang Hong] depended on the object in wild hopes of thereby summoning the feudal lords. The feudal lords did nor follow thu, and the lin capmred Chang Hong and put him to death. The talk among the Zhou of formulas and abnonnalides began with Chang Hong. (28.[]64) The Zhou gradually fell under the sway of magicians overly oriented toward spirits who tried to use formulas to impose their will on the world. The

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TH1I SACRIFIC1IS THAT ORDER THE WORLD

THE SACRtFICES THAT ORDBR THB WORLD

Zhou thUS fell into the same pattern of decadence seen in earlier dynasties. By presenting a concern with formulas and an interest in the spirit world as the defining moment ofZhou decline, Sima Qian sea the framework for his presentarion of the Qin-Han imperium. In 111 BC, Qin completed itS conquest of the other states and created the first empire. The four altars at Yong continued ro be clte dominant sacrifices of the Qin state (18.1)76). Not only did Qin maintain these sacrifices, howeYer, but it also made :mempa to take control of clte significant cults of each region within the empire. As Sima Qian states: '"When Qin united all under heaven, [the First Emperor] commanded the officials of sacrifices to PUt in order the rrequently performed offerings to Heaven, Earth, the famous mountains, the great rivers, the ghosts, and the spiritS~ {a3.1371}. Unlike Shun's sacrificial tours, however, the First Emperor's rours of the lands under his control were not inspections of feudal lands; they were imperial tours of the emperor's own lands, intended to enhance the personal power of the ruler. This attempt to secure divine support also, Sima Qian argues, helps to explain the rise to prominence of the Jangshi. G iven his framework of dynastic decline, seen most obviously in his descriptions of Kongjia of the Xia as being too fond of spirits and of the last Z hou kings as falling under the sway of figures with magical formulas, Sima Qian is p
me Five Peaks, a series of mountains with important sacrificial mditions. The king of Changshan. for example. was charged with a crime and removed, and Changshan was made intO a commandery. k Sima Qian narrates:"k such, the Five Peaks were all situated in the commanderies of the Son of Heaven" (a8.1387). Sima Qian clearly contrasts this policy of centralization, in which the Five Peaks were under direct imperial control, with the feudal system of sacrifices begtm by Shun. Indeed. whereas Shun inspected the territories of the feudal lords only once every five years, Emperor Wu undenook constant tours of his empire (see, e.g.• 28.1389 and 1403). He did this $0 orren, Sima Qian claims, that the officials in charge of the commanderies and kingdoms kept their roads and palaces and sacrificial sites in repair in anticiparion of a visit rrom the emperor (a8. 1396). Also like the First Emperor, Wu Strongly supponed the Jangjhi in the hope that they could increase his access to the world of spirits and ultimately help him gain immortality. Indeed, the most important ritual innovations during his reign were taken on the advice of these masters. One of these masters. Miu Ji, autho red a memorial concerning the Great One, a deity who Miu Ji claimed to be above the five gods in power: "The most valued of the Heavenly spirits is the Great One. The assistants of the Great One are the five gods. In ancient times the Son of Heaven sacrificed to the G reat One in the spring and aurumn at the southeast suburb" (18.1386). Following the advice of Miu Ji, Wu esrablished offerings to the Great One. is At least in Sima Qian's presentarion, it would appear that this addirion to the sacrificial system was yet one more step in a long process that had begun with the Qin-a proces.s involving ever more clainu to dominance. JUSt as the Qin rulers had progressively added sacrifices to more gods at Yong until four were receiving cult. and just as the Han founder had added sacrifices to a fifth god. so Emperor Wu was laying claim to yet a more powerful deity. And Sima Qian is dearly presenting this cule, instituted in response to the advice of a master of formulas, in a negative light.

I,. For a discwsion of Sinu. Qi;m', mWI on EmjXror WU'I consoliduion of t~ Fim Empaw', C'U'ltion, I« dupteT 5 of my A"'b; ....!mc.ojCr... tio". 1 refencd in ChapceT 1\ of this book 10 Hegel', dictwn lhal ewnll OCCUr twice. Thw, empire in Rome dcvd6pecl only ali:eT Augullw re-Created whal ~r had created. In thinking ~boull~ Firsl Emperor ~nd Em· perOT Wu, Sima Qi.Jn would mort likely have agreed with Mar",', refonnul.OIion or Herl: "Hegd o~ IOftIewher< Ihat all great incident! and individuals occur, iLl it were, twice. He forgot to add: I~ fin! time aI tragedy, lhe ItcOnd aJ farce' (Tht E,'gblIt",1t Brw"'Qirr pI £",wis Bon.lf'lrt., p. IS).

I'.

Beyond the ~nribules merllioned in lhe pr~ow chapteT" (he Grear Qrw; also ~ppean to have Iud JOn\( allOCution, with warf:ue. For example, when Emptror Wu was about 10 ~{Ia(k N~nyuc, he Ii..( made an ~nnouncemcnt ~nd p.ayer 10 Ihe G real One. A ~eT wu m~dc lIu\ Ihc G rand Hi.ll ori~" poil1led al Ihe 'OUI1I'1 aboul 10 Ix ~Indted (Shiji, >8. IJ95). Afm Nanym Wat ddealed, EmjXror Wu offered IlICrif1a1 of tlunlu to Ihe god (Sbiji, :1 •• (196). For poulble J'lleograph k p~curlon 10 tllete auocialion" I « Li Ling. "An Archaeologic_I SllIdy ofTllyl (Grind One) W ouldp."

,06

THE S A CR IFI CBS THAT ORDBR THE WORLD

TH 8 SACRlflCBS THAT ORDBI\ TH E WOI\LD

Anomer step in the development of the H2n S2crificw system occurred when a certain Shaowcng gained an audience with t he ruler because of his "formula.! for ghosts and spiries.· In response to S haoweng's propou.ls, Emperor Wu built a palace in Ga nquan to summon the Heavenly spirits. The following year, mer performing che suburban sacrifices at Yong. Wu decwed: "Now I h.avc personally performed the suburban ucri6ces to the higher gods, hut I hollYe not made offerings to the H o u-ru ( Lord Earth)," In response, Kuan S hu. t he Officer ofS:acrifices who had beeh cb.nged to continue the: formuw of Li Sh:lojun. recommended due sacrifices be made at Fenyin. The: emperor thereupon traveled eat and personally performed the sacrifice to H au-ell at Fcnyi n (28.1386-89). Wu then perfo rmed the suburban sacrifice at Yong and returned to Ganquan. He ordered Kuan Shu and others to make an a1ur to the Great O ne at Ganquan. The alrar was modeled on MiuJi's a1rar. The tOP levd was dedicated to the Great O ne. The nea level consisted of five sidu, each of which, in the appropri:ue direction, was dedicated to one of the five gods. The third level was dedicated to [he various spirits. In 113 8 C, WU first per· formed the suburban sacrifice to the Great O ne. A beauriful glow appeared that night, and the next day yellow qi rose to H eaven. The Grand H istorian Sima Tan (the fathet of Sima Qian), t he Officet of Sacrificu Kuan Shu. and othen argued th:u an altar to the Great One should be built in response (a8.1394-95). These sacrifices to the G reat One :u Ganquan and to H ou-tu at Fenyin would become two of the moSt important imperial sacrifices for Emperor Wu. As Sima Qian is at pains to point out, each srage in the development of Wu's sacrificial system was underraken at the instigation offangmi. In Sirna Qian's naJr.ltive, theK masren of formulas, who played such a major role at the COU rt of the First Emperor as well, bear a strong resemblance to me figures that ame to prominence at t he end of the Z hou dynasty, and the twO rulers seem quire comparable [0 the rulers who were too fond of spirits at rhe end of the Xia dynasty. In other words, Sima Qian has clearly constructed his narrative to emphasize the deadence of the religious activities of his sovereign. and he clearly means to imply that the end of the Han dynasty may be approaching. .. But there is another side to Sima Qian's presentation that is of crucial importance for our unde rstanding of the later debates concerning the Han sacrificial system. In Sima Qian's preKntation of the rise of the Qin.Han

system of sacrifices. imperial power and a certain mode of religious wonhip are directly interconnected. The system began with a transgression. when Duke Xiang of Qin inaugurated suburban sacri6cu to m e god of the west while the Zhou were srill in power. The addition of sacrificu to the gods of the other three directions reflected the growth in Qin's clainu. Mo reover, all of this was. according to Sima Qian. justified as a restoration of the sacrifi· cial sYStem ofHuangdi. the figure associated with cenrralized statecraft. The Qin imperial state wimes.scd an enlargement of this mode of reli· giow worship. The First Emperor spent much of his life travening the lands under hi.! control in o rder to perform what had been local sacrificu and to search for spiriu and transcendents who could help him attain personal im. morulity. This trend reached its extreme with Empero r W u. who, under the influence of fangshi. instituted cults to deities claimed to be even greater than those worshipped by previow rulers and embarked on lengthy inspection tours to perform personally local sacrifices. H ere too. Huangdi was ex. plicitly invoked as the exemplar. The rise of a particular mode of religious worship and the emergence of cenrrali%ed state institutions are thus pre· sented as linked.

, 01

& we shall see, t his association between the Qin and Han sacrificial system and imperial control was also ar the heart of the debates that would rage several decadu later. The ministen examined below also viewed theK two as linked. but their response was quite different from Sima Qian·s. Sima Qian did not present the rise of the Yo ng sacrificial system as necessarily wrong. although he did portray it as new. And for him. a relia nce o n magicians and a fondness for spirits and portents were nothing but recurrent signs of dy. nastic decline. They may have been associated in this puticular instance with the rise of empire. but Sima Qian's concern lies more in demonstrating the decadence of his own ruler rather than in critiquing t he Qin·Han impe· rial system per se. T he figures to whom we will now tum, however, had a different reading of these issues. D eurmining the Positio n of H eaven and Earm: The

Ritual Reforms at [he End of the W este rn

H~

By the end of Emperor Wu's reign. me H an was suffering from imperial overreach: the military campaigns that defined Wu's cenrrali%acion and ex. palUion were aeverely straining the resources of the Han state. A gradual de· cline let in and l parked a aerin of debates concerning Han statecraft thar

308

THE S,,-CR,IFICBS THAT ORDBR THB WORLD

T H B SACRIFICBS THAT OROEll T HIi WORLD

came to .:I. head in rhe reign of Emperor Cheng (33-7 BC),19 When Cheng came to power, [WO of his ministers, Kuang Heng and Zhang Tan. used rhe opportunity to push for a shift- in Hm policies. Their method of doing so was to call on the emperor to follow the precedents found in the classics. Their memorials are filled with references to the Shijillg and rhe Shangshu. and they frequently critique rhe Han for not following antiquity. Their perspective is clearly quite different from that ofSim:a QWl. The initial attack on the sacrificial system of Emperor Wu appeared in a memorw by Kuang Heng and Zhang Tan:

Z hang Tan's scheme, rhe deities travel to the ruler's capiral. Kuang H eng and Z hang Tan are thus setting themselves in opposition to one of the basic assumptions behind the Qin-H an imperial system. At issue here is the relationship between the ruler and spirits, as well as the relationship between the ruler and his realm. This memorial by Kuang H eng and Zhang Tan sparked a debate at court. Fifty officials defended the proposals through references to the classical texts. They began with a citation of the ")i fa" chapter of the Liji:

In [he affairs of emperors and kings. none is greater thUi supporting the order of H eaven. In supporting the order of Heaven. nothing is more impon:anr [han sacrifices and offerings. The refore, sage-kings devoted their hearts and trained thei r

thoughts to the fullest to establish their regulatioll5. They sacrifi ced to Heaven in the southern suburb. in accordance with the propriety of yang. T hey offered to Eanh in the northern suburb. in accordance with the image of yin.:W Kuang H eng and Z hang Tan are arguing in £:ivor of sacrifices [ 0 Heaven and Earth, with the respective altars aligned on a south-north axis. This no rmative order. the memorial claims, was practiced in the past. However, the rirual sYStem in place since (he time of Emperor Wu -differs £fom the regulations of antiquity" (2.58.12.54). Kuang H eng and Zhang T an argue that (he main al tars to the G reat One and Hou-tu should be resited south and north of the capiral ofCh:.mg'an: In ancient times, Wen and Wu of Zhou sacrificed at Feng and Hao, and King Cheng ucrificed at the city ofLuo. From this it can be seen that Heliven follows the king to where he Jives and accepcs his offerings. It is fitting that the offerings to the Grellt One at Ganquan and to Hou-tu at Hedong be moved and Set up at Chang'an in accord with Ithe practices of] the ancient thellrchs and kings. (l sB.I2.S4) Since the Zhou kings offered sacrifices at their capitals, [he Han emperors should too. Kuang Heng and Zhang Tan have clearly shifted the emphasis of the sacrificial system. Emperor Wu modeled himself on Huangdi; Kuang Heng and Zhang Tan emphasize the Zhou kings. Emperor Wu traveled to various places in the empire to perform t he sacrifices. In Kuang H eng and L9. By far lhe 001 discussion of these delntes is Loewe,

CnJ;J~..,j Co~flkt i~ H~II

'54-9'·

lO. H~IIJh~ "JiaOli :.lIi: lsB.'l Sl~S4: herein;.hc r tiled in the: lUI.

an ...., pp.

3°'

"Burning victims on the grellt circular altar is to sacrifice to Heaven: burying victims at the squue alt~r is to sactiflce to Earth." An offering in the southern suburb is the mellll5 of determining the position of Heliven. Sacrificing to Earth on the square altar, situated in the nonhern suburb, fixes the position of yin. The position for each of the suburban sacrifices is located to the south and north of where the sage-king resides. (l?B.IlH) It is the ruler who determi nes t he pro per positions of H eaven and Earth. He does so through his establishment of the capital and through proper sacrifices: The Shallgshu says: "On the third day, dingli, he [the Duke ofZhouJ made offerings of tWO oxen in the suburbs." \\Then Ihe Duke ofZhou raised offerings, it WilS to announce: his moving to a new city. He determined the sacrificial rites at Luo. (l?B.Il?4) The quotation is from the "Luogao~ cha pter of the Shangshu, which narrates the founding of the city of Luoyang by the Duke of Zhou. The Qin moved their capital to Yong in order to bring it closer to a spiritually potent area. The autho rs of this memorial are claiming that the proper method is for the ruler [0 choose his capital and rhen announce his decision to t he higher powers. The Zhou observed proper procedures; the Qin and the Han did not. Much of this rhetoric refers implicitly to the issues concerning empire. A call for the ruler to abandon sacrificial policies (hat require him to travel throughout the realm is, in essence, a call for the ruler to withd raw from the highly centralized form of imperial statecraft that had been developing since the emergence of the Qin. T he authors are calling fo r a restoration of (he Z hou system, and indeed, go so far as to argue that the Han, by following and expanding t he new imperial system of the Qin, failed to receive [he support ofHuven:

THS S AC R IF I CSS TH AT ORDS R THS WORLD

THS SAC lliFI CSS T H AT ORDSR TH S WORLD

When enlightened kings and sagely ruler, ,erve Heaven. it is ilIuminued; when they serve Earth, it is explored. When Heaven and Euth are illuminated and explored, men the divine illumination (~n ming) is arrayed. Heaven and Earth take the king :u the master. T herefore, when the uges and kings instituted the rices of sacrificing to Heaven and Earth, they necessarily did so in the luburln of the OIpitaL Chang'an is where the ugdy ruler dwdls, and it is where august Heaven Watches him, The sacrifices at Ganquan and Hedong have not been accepted by the spirirs and numinous powers; it is fitting to move them to plues with the correctJang and the gren yin, We should oppose custom and return to the anrienrs. acco rd with the regulations of the sages. and Set aright the position of Heaven as the riruab prescribe. (3.58.13.54) H eaven wants co observe the ruler in his own capiu.l. and its suppon comes only when the ruler has been judged .adequ.ate in his
sm,

,u

antiquity ( ~ S B . I~s,). Implicit here is a rejection of the claim that the QinHan system is bued on the sacrifices of Hu.angdi. In}1 BC. Emperor Cheng accepted these argumenrs. In me first signific.ant rejection of the sacrificial system eh.at had begun wim the Qin and had been developed by Emperor Wu, Cheng insriruted suburban sacrifices fa H eaven south of Chang'.an (~SB. I ~S')'

Ku.ang Heng and Zhang Tan went on to critique the numerous sacrifices set up at the insrig:ltion of the jlJngJhi. Of ehe 68} such sacrifices. only 208. they argued. conformed to ehe rites of antiquity (~SB. I ~S7). T hey called on the emperor to discontinue the remaining ..,S. The emperor did so. The HClnJohIi states that only IS of the 2O} sacrifices at Yang were m.aintained. And many of the sacrifices instiruted by Cheng's predecessors on the Han (hrone were abolished (~5B.I~S'-58), The debate. however. did not end here. Liu Xiang immediately authored a memorial calling for.a restora tion of Emperor Wu's sacrificial system. The sacrifices. Liu Xiang argued. were instituted in response to the spiri ts and thus should nor be abolished: ~ Moreove r. when Ganquan, Fenyin• .and the five a1ears of Yang were first instituted. it w.as bec.ause there were spirits of the upper and lower realms interacting (gllllying). O nly ehen were [the altars] built. This w.as not done Iightl( (l-SB.I~S8). In opposition to Ku.ang H eng and Z hang Tan's .argument that H eaven should follow the king to where he lives, tiu Xiang is claiming th.at humans must respond to the spirits: if the spirits interact with humans .at specific places, then ehose are the places where the sacrifices mwt be given. Liu Xiang's memorial ended with a warning of the dire consequences that could occur now that the sacrifices had been discontinued (2.SB.I2.S8-S9). This memorial is of some interest. since it is one of the few exr.ant documents writte n by a defender of the Q in-H .an sacrificial system. Moreover. since Liu Xiang would have considered himself a RII. ehe memorial shows the degree ( 0 which (he debate-.as wdl .as many of the underlying issues concerning spirits and the empire-cut .across divisions at the court. Liu Xiang is .arguing that thete are cenain sacred sires where the: spiritS interact with humans • .and Yong. Ganqu.an, .and Fenyin are among these sites. The altars at these places. therefore, were institueed in response to the spirits. No d.aim is made here for the antiquity of the sacrifices or for their purported existence during the reign of Huangdi. Liu's argument is b.ased solely on ehe spirin. Emperor Cheng. who blamed his lack of an heir on his .ab.andonmenr

THS S,\.C RIFICBS THAT ORDER THE WORLD

THB SACRIFICBS THAT ORDBR THB WORLO

of the institutions of his ancestors, concurred with Liu Xiang. Emperor

the exertion of a theomorphic will to align rhe cosmos nor an attempt to become a spirit in accord with the patterns of the universe. Rather. it suppom a hierarchy of Heaven and man; humans create the center of the cosmos, and Heaven judges man's success. The authors of mese memorials referred to the Duke ofZhou's establishment of Luoyang. As in that earlier model, it is humans who align me capiw and thw derennine the posicion of H eaven. But absent in the Han is any notion of the agonistic relationship becween humans and the divine powers thn underlay {he Zhou rituals, Now, the proper cosmic role of humans u to dttennine the pilce of H eaven, and the proper cosmic role of Heaven is [0 granr or deny approval Heaven and man are rirually separated and yet interdependent. with each possessing its distinct place and its dUtinct duty.

l"

Wu's sacrificia.l system was restored ( a5B,1159).

The response came from :morner official, Gu Yong:ll Your servant has hard thai if you are clur about [he natu re of Heaven md Ea.rfh, you cannot be deluded by spirits and anomalies. If you understand me dispositions of the myriad things. you cannot be deluded by what d~ not fit into categories. Those who mrn their back on the correct Jnlh of humaneness Uld propciety and do not honor the modd sayings of the five Clusics, but are ilUte;tci-f1lled with reporfS abou t abnormalities. anomalies, gh05U. and spirits. widely revere formulas f~r sacri·

fices and offerings, leck [0 requite sacrifices that bring no fortUne, go so far a.Ii [0 uy that there aut transcendents in this world, chew and swillow immon:aliry drugs....

They aU deceive the people and mislead the manes. hold to the len Ii.e.. wrong) way. cmbracr falsity and fabrkationl so :u [0 delude [he current ruler. ... It il for this reason (hat the enlightened king should resist them and not luten. and the uge would CUt them off and nOt speak lof such thin8"J. (25B.1260)

l'l

Conclusion According to Gu Yong. accepting {he arguments of Liu Xi.ang would give inordinate power to those figures-like the fllngshi-who cilim the ability to fmd s.acred sites .and inter:lct with spirits. His critique is similar to Sima Qian's. but his solution is quite different: G u Yong c.alls on the emperot to .accept" the nature of Heaven .and Earth as found in the Five Classics. Gu Yong continues: · When the First Emperor united .all under Heaven. he wu swayed by the w.ay of spirits and transcendents." Gu Yong then criticizes the First Emperor for sending OUt people [0 ·seek spirits and gather drugs" (15B.1160). The .argument resembles Sima Qi.an's, bur .absent here is Sima Qian's framework of dynutic decline. What we see insread u simply an emphuis on the newness of this system and on the Zhou sacrificial system as the norm of antiquity. . This alrern.ation between the twOsacrificw systems continued during rhe reign of Emperor Ai (r. 6- 1 lIC ), Chengdi's successor (ZSB.Il.63-64). Finally, in response to memorials from {he chief minister Wang Mang. Emperor Ping (r. AD 1-5) instirured the reforms recommended by Kuang Heng (15B.1166-68). The system establuhed under Emperor Wu wu dismantled. and the riruals purportedly in place during the Z hou were reinstated. ~n this new system, it is hum.ans who crea{e the center by establuhing a capital .and then properly aligning Heaven and Earth. Thu involves neither 2).

For Gu Yong.

I« H~"J,w. 8S.)44)-1).

Loc~. BiQ,.~pbk"r DUrio""f], pp.

I).- n.

For a (onvcniem IUlnm.ry of Ihis car«r, fer

The debates ([.aced in this chapter concern cwo interrelated issues: the nacure of the Han state and the proper rebtions becween the ruler .and the spirits. Each of the textS we have discussed-Dong Zhongshu's writings, Sima Qian's historical account, and the memorials of the teign of Emperor Cheng-assumed this linkage, and their critiques of the Q in-Han model played on both themes. According to Sima Qian and Ku.ang Heng .and his supporters, the QinHan sacti6ci.a1 system, which they associated with the imperw state. wu motivated by an atttnlpt to gain concrol over sacred sites where spirits dwelled-sites whose sacri6cw traditions, it was claimed, could be traced back ( 0 Huangdi. The emperor hoped (h.at by communicating with the spirits of each region, he could gain both personal immortality and control over {hose regions. This system involved several related impetltives. H orizont.ally, it resulted in a drive on the part of each emperor to take control of more and more such sacred sites and to establish a cycle of visits. By the time of Emperor Wu, thu had resulted in the emperor making the five sacred mounnins into imperial commanderies, undertaking innumerable imperial [ours, and adding the sites of G.anqu:m and Fenyin (0 the already important cultic area of Yong. Vertically, it meant appealing to ever more powerful deities, who, it was hoped, could exercise more control over the spirit pantheon. This, too, reached a new extreme with Emperor Wu, who offered sacrifices direcdy to the G reat One. Here again, we see Emperor Wu attempting to

,..

,.,

THB SACIlIFICBS THAT ORDBR THB WOIlLD

THB SACRIFICBS THAT ORDBR THB WOIHD

accomplish through sacrificw activity something comp:.trable [0 what Kif· diviniurion expem were seeking through cultivation. And. socially, it meant

In ultimately choosing to side with Kuang Heng and his followers, me emperors of the Western Han effected a fundamental shift in the orientation of the Han state. Following these refonns, claims of ascension and selfdivinizarion ceased to be favored at court. And, indirectly. these reforms may in part have been responsible for the later popularity of millenamn movements, lTW\y of which would, in their critiques of the Han state, embrace me very notions of divinization and ascension that the reforms of Kuang Heng and others had driven out of the central COUrt.

gt2nring power to those figures-especially the flmgJ,i-who claimed the ability to find and summon spirits for the emperor. In short, it w:a.s :a system mar inher~dy involved a nevcr-ending attempt ro gain more control over

the terTicorial and spiritual realms. In contrast, the system that, in very different W2yS and for very different purposes, both Sima Qian and Ktung Heng ascribed to the-prc:-Qin period. made: no CWIn (or the sacraIity o f the: primary sites.. Instead. the ruler provided a centcr for the kingdom by eSClblishing his capital No claim of sig-

nificance: was made for the sire. If Heaven and Earth accepted the ruler. the capital became the place :or which yin and yang imCr.l.cted properly. The ruler then, from p:aid hOffi2ge to the spirits of each region and every five years traveled to the five mountains to meer with the feudal lords of each locality.

anr.

For Sima Qian, rhe distinction between these sysrems was far less imporrant than the overall narrative of dynasric decline, a narrative that he urilized to critique Emperor Wu's concern with magical formuks and personal immortality. But for Kuang Heng and those associated with him, the distinction was all-important. At stake for them was an assertion of boundaries, an assertion that would resuk, they hoped, in a radically different (and, in their view, traditional) vision of rule. They were calling for a ritual system mar granted the ruler tremendous power: it was he who established the center and determined the position o f Heaven and Earth. But no further expansion of the ruler's power was built into the system: he had no need to gain d irect contro l Oller local areas or to appeal to ever more numerous o r ever more powerful deities. O n me connary, Kuang Heng's precise concern was to assert a srricr demarcation between humans and spiries, between center and periphery. The ruler could not ascend to Heaven, could nor become immortal, and hence should not seek to gain control over sacred sites to which spiries could be summoned to confer such powers. Hununs were humans, spirits were spiriu; each had its own domain, each had its own duties. And the ruler belonged fully to t he human realm. In making this argument, Kuang Heng was building on claims made much earlier by Dong Zho; gshu concerning the proper demarcation of the roles of humanity and the divine powers. In this formulation, man's proper duty was to establish a center and to determine the p<»itions of Heaven and Earth.

Conclusion Culture and History in Early China

At the end of the Western Han, the dominant conception of the cosmos was of a world oTg2fli:::ed by humans, ritually separate from, yet correlated with, Heaven and Earth. Kuang H eng's model was :.I. cosmological reo reading of narratives ITom the Sh4ngshu concerning the Duke ofSh.ao's aligning ofLuoyang: the king places his capinl and rhus determines the positions of H eaven and Earth. Heaven, Earth. and man are hannoniud when each performs its proper cosmological dury. Bur it is only if we know the significance these ideas possessed in early Han rhu we an understand the real concerns behind che rirwl reform- namely, various -claims of diviniurion that had flourished in {he c.ariy H:an, or, mo re explicitly. rheomorphic no' tions of kingship as well as self-cultivation practices that involved.:l. rejection of rexmal authoriry and the precedents set by the past sages. It is thw fitting to end this srudy at this point, when the H an COUrt forcefully rejected the claims of divinization-claims that had played such a crucial role in the reaction against sacrifice and divination and in the rise of empire. And it is not surprising that in rejecting these claims, figures such as Kuang Heng rumed back to a particuJar. cosmological reading of Bronze Age riruals-since these were precisely the rituals that the divini:zation movements had reacted againsr. FollOWing David Keighrley. I have argued that the paramount religiow concern of the Shang and Western Z hou was to forge deceased humans into

me

3"

CONCLUSION

CONCLUSION

ancesrors who could then be influenced through sacrifices and divinations. The rituals worked from the botrom up: che lower ancestors were wuker. yet morc .amenable to the blandishments of human riew.!, whereas the higher powers were stranger but less malleable. The goal was thus to work one's way up the tnntheon: the ritual specialises would appeal to the lower ancestors, who would in cum be directed to appeal to (he higher :;mcestors, who would in rum be called on to pacify the more powerful, non-ancestral powers-including. most important, Dj. or H eaven. These .ucrincw practices repre~ntcd an .acrempr to join nature spirits and ghosts of deceased hum:,ms into a single, unified sYStem. The deceased humans were amsformed into ancestral spirits, defined by their roles in a hierarchy; n;lture spirits and unrelated yet nonetheless powerful deceased humans were similarly placed inro this hierarchy as well. By the fourth century BC, however, a new group of figures (usually referred to in the secondary literature as the ,hi) began gaining prominence at the courtS of the time. It is clear from their recurrent critiques of sacrifice and divination that such figures felt themselves to be in competition with ritual specialists. Indeed, [he authors of these teXts not only rejected sacrificial models but also actempted to reverse them and thereby supersede them. Sacrificial models in early China operated by working from the recenrly deceased and less powerful local spirits roward more distant and more powerful deities. In contrast. the new model posited the One. the ultimate ancestor from which everything-all spirits. all natural phenomena, and all humans-were generated. This concept emerged, for the first time. in numerous fourth -century Be texts, such as the "Neiye,H the Taiyi ,heng shui, and the Lao;zi. The eneire pantheon of deities-from local spirits to Heaven itself-as well as the natural phenomena they supposedly conrrolled, were subsumed under the One. And instead of appealing to this ultimate ancestor by working up the pantheon. proponents of the new model claimed direct access to the One and thus full power and knowledge over (he cosmos. Much of the interest in these textS lies in the different ways these systems based on the One were builc. One app roach. developed in the ~Neiye" and taken further in texts like the ~Xinshu" chapters. is self-divinization, which is achieved by. among other things, returning to and holding &st to tFte One: the sage gains power over the things of the universe by grasping me ancestor that generated them and continues to underlie them. Another approach, seen in the T aiyi ~ng wui, is to gain full knowledge: rearranging the pantheon of the

day into a series of lineal descendants from the One allowed the authors to claim that they alone understood the workings of the cosmos. In each of these texts, however, the authors claimed either the ability. or possession of the techniques that conferred the ability, to reach the One and thereby understand and exercise control over the cosmos without resorting to divination and sacrifice. What bothered figures like Xunzi and the authors of the Xici wuan about these claims was that they denied the efficacy of time-honored rituals of the past. These authors therefore argued in support of divination and sacrifice. even while building their arguments on many of the same cosmological claims as the proponents ofself-divinizarion and gnosis. The debate between ritual specialists and cosmologists continued during the rise of empire in early China. Alrhough rhe sacrificial system rhar arose with the Qin and H an empires has often been described as based on a correlative system. I have argued that it was based largely on a new variant of the sacrificial model-divinization through sacrifice rather than through cosmology. The process here was, horizontally, to rake over more and more sacred spaces inhabited by local spirits and offer them cult and, vertically. to appeal to ever higher gods in the pantheon. The endless process of consolidating local cults while also appealing fO higher gods was seen ro aid in the process of the divinization of the ruler and ultimately lead to his ascension. The extreme was reached with Emperor Wu, whose consolidation of the empire coincided with his sacrifices fO the Great One. As Sima Qian correctly pointed out, this created a dynamic in which the ruler tried to gain more land and undertake more travels in order to appropriate more and more divine power. This new form of theomorphic kingship was critiqued by several voices in the early Han-from rhe authors of me Huainanzi, who called for a cosmologi~l form of divinization, fO figures like Dong Zhongshu. who rejected divinization 2nd proposed correlatively defined sacrifices. Both of these were attempts to limit the theomorphic claims of the ruler through appeals to cosmological patterns. Ultimately, Emperor Wu's sysrem began to falter because of imperial overreach, and it was finally repealed near the end of the Western Han. The divinization claims thar had so dominared court politics since the beginning of the Qin empire were rejected. Rulers were defined as humans. rirually separare from divine powers, with their own duties to perfonn. As a consequence. claims of ascension became associated with those groups who opposed the empire.

me

3'9

3'0

CONCLUSION

CONCLUSION

These points also have companrive signific.ance. As we h.ave seen repeatedly in this study. China, when discussed in a comparative perspective, has long been characterized lS a culture rh2t 2SSumed cominuicy between the hum2n and the divine world. In some comparisons, China is seen as the antithesis of the West; in others it is placed at a different point on an evolutionary line of development. But either way, early China is presented:.l.S a sociery devoid of the tensions between man :md God, Zeus :md Prometheus, that pervaded the Hebraic and Greek traditions, as a society that never experienced the disranriuion of the world from divinity that has existed in the West. Although Weber portrayed chis neg:uiveiy. most China spccWiscs h2vt portrayed it positively: China has become the land where gods and men are linked in harmony, and where there exists a fundamental continuity of the human and the divine. China is also frequently presented as the one major civilization that never discarded primitive notions of haonony with the natural and divine worlds. Working from this same line of argument, scholars have built other comparative models for explaining China: shamanism, this-worldly optimism, bureaucratic harmony, sacrificial do ut d~s. One of the few scholars working within a comparative framework who has rejected this approac h is H einer Roetz. Roetz attemptS to read into early China the sante transcendental breakthrough and "disenchantment of nature~ that he sees as inherent in any rational evolution, and his picture of early Chin.a is wildly at odds with that of other scholars. But even Roetz attributes what he sees as the ultimate failure of Chinese philosophy to itS inability to develop as strong a tension between human society and the world as in the West. I have tried to break down the binaries of dualism/monism and tragic/ harmonious cosmologies as they are often applied to Greece and China in twO w.ays. First, I have tried to focus on how specific individuals in specific contexts worked through issues of the proper relationships between humans and divine powers and how the resulting debates played out historically. As we have repeatedly seen, characterizations of Greece as dualistic and China as monistic are of little use in this approach. Empedocles, for example, was monistic; question four of the Shiwtll was dualistic. Moreover, even the term ·monism~ is insufficiently nuanced to cover the positions taken In these debates. Depending on one's me thod of positing the human and divine elements of the cosmos, one can assert discontinuity even while proclaiming a monistic cosmos. For example, Dong Zhongshu asserted a monistic cosmos

in opposition to the theistic cosmology dominant at the imperial court of his day, but he also strongly distinguished humanity and Heaven and argued, also in opposition to the cults .at the court. thou hum.ans could not become gods. A strong assertion of continuity was coupled with • .at.a different level• .a strong assertion of discontinuity. And only by looking at the contempor.aty conteXt can one understand the signific.ance of these cI.aims. To describe Dong Zhongshu.as simply "monistic· nils to do justice to the many implic.ations of his .arguments. And the point can be PUt in stronger terms when we look .at .attempts to describe several e.arly Chinese .authors as "monistic." Both che ·Xinshu· ch.apters .and Dong Zhongshu's cosmology are monistic, but these two monisms h.ave very different implications. The .authors of the "Xinshu· ch.apters were arguing for the continuity of hum .an .and divine powers in opposition to the discontinuities implied by s.acrifice ;md divin.arion; Dong Zhongshu was distinguishing H eaven and man in opposition to the claims of imperial divinity. For the authors of the ·Xinshu· chapters. humans could become spirits and hence did not need divination and s.acrifice; for Dong Zhongshu, hum.ans were separate &om the divine. but, precisely through such actions as sacrifices, had a crucial cosmic role to play. For the authors of the · Xinshu- chapters, the king was divine; for Dong Zhongshu, he was human. In shorr, the categorization of early Chinese thought as ~monistic,~ in opposition to a -dualistic· cosmology of the West. breaks down at every level when we explore the historical conteXts and implications of specific. statements. My second goal has been to place the debates analyzed in this book within a comparative &amework that has greater expl.anatory power than that of a ~monisticn cosmology or the related claims of sh.am.anism.and sacrificial do ut d~s. At first glance. this ucond goal, of seeking [0 .analyze this pe_ riod of e.arly Chinese histoty &om a larger perspective, might appear to be in conflict with the emphasis on nuance that ch.aracterizes my first goal. One of the underlying arguments of this study. however, has been that these rwo goals are mutUlllly reinforcing. for it is precisely in the nuances of the debate that issues of comparative interest come to the fore. More specifically, it is through such nuances that one can recognize the tensions and concerns underlying the debates. and it is only, in turn, by recognizing these tensions and concerns that one can compare the Chinese material with that found in other cultures facing similar political.and cultural problems.

'"

'"

CONCLUS I ON

CONC I. US I ON

It follows that comparison will be most fruitful when we compare cultures that have faced :I. similar set of historical circumstances. I b.ave fore agreed with the many scholars who have stressed the bcndiu of comparing arly China and u rly Greece. Like early China, ancient Greece also witnessed. at roughly the same period, comparable social and political changes (the breakdown of an older aristocratic, Bronze Age society. and the growth of independent. competing territorial S[;ICCS, some of which devel-

Graner yields a rather different portrait of early China: G ranet's analyses become far more persuasive when they are wen out of Graner's own essentulizing. evolutionary, and typological frameworks. Since I have found much of this anthropological theory-from Granet ro Sahlins-helpful in conceptualizing the issues at hand, I hope that I have, at least to some small extent, retUrned rhe favor by hel ping to bring the Chinese material intO broader anthropological concerns. And when we trea r these issues from such a historical and comparative perspective, many of the readings proposed from within either rhe evolutionary or essentialist frameworks cease to be fully convincing. We do nor find in early China assumptions of hannony or of a contin uity between humans and divine powers or of a lack of tension between humans and the divine. On the contrary, one of the crucial issues in early China was the recurring tension between those who wished [0 maintain a ritual separation of humans and divine powers and those who wished to destroy those separations and appropriate divine powers for themselves. Spirits were not only powers with which one hannonized; they were olten powers one fought, che.ated, appropri.ated, and tried to become or tr.anscend. And .a significant p.art of early Chinese history becomes fully underm.nd.able only when we .acknowledge such tensions and tr.ace the ways in which they played OUt.

mere-

oped imperial ambitions), as well 2S a series of interrc:lated..dehatu concerning divinization. sacrifice, and cosmology. But I have tried to develop this comparison on diffetem grounds. I have advocated working toward a vocabulary that is both nlWtced enough to .:illow for careful historical studies ltnd yet open enough to maintain cross-cultural validity. Instead of caregorizing cultures in terms of such dichotomies as Hmonism/ dualism Hor "immanence/transcendence: and instead of working !Tom (even if only implicit) evolutionary frameworks based H on "religion to philosoph( or Hanimism to humanism and r:uion:a.lism narratives, we should try to focus on terms that :allow us to tease out the problems and tensions in each cul ture under an:a.lysis. In rh is book, I have argued H that the tensions surrounding Hdivinization or norions of continuity and discontinuity may result in more meaningful comparisons between Greece and China than do either rhe evolutionary or rhe es.sentializing frameworks. In both Greece and China, at roughly the same time, one finds comparable tensions surrounding sacrifici:a.l action, self-divinizarion, cosmology, and empire. The interesting issues for comparative studies are how and why the claims were made in each culfUre, and how and why va rious solutions came to be irurifUrion:a.liud. Posing the questions in this way has, I hope, yielded resulrs chat explain more than the other frameworks discussed in the Introduction. In setting up this comparative framework, I have fUmed to anthropological discussions of kingship, sacrillce, and cosmology. Building on the work of Ilgures like Uvi-Srrauss and Sahlins, I have tried to develop a valid compararive vocabulary that helps to uncover the complexities of claims made in various culfUres. In bringing this literature ro bear on the early Chinese materials, I have based much of my an:a.lysis on the work of Marcel Graner. This is somewhat ironic, since G ranet was one of the most influenria1 figures in defining China as a land of continuity-one of the positions I critique in this book. However, u I argue in Chapters + and 6, a careful reading of

'"

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*-

m.

m.

m

n ..

Index

Agriculture: and decline of shamanism, )6-}7; human control over naNre. 42.-43. and invocation of ancestors, 46; origins. 70; sacrifices involved, 70,71-71

Ai. Emperor. lla AidontuJ, !ill Alexander, l}S-}6, 'U711 Alignment, scc Jillf ying (ilignmenr and orientation) Ames, RogerT .• [7-[8, 11, 22, 1}, 14748.151, [58

AIlIlItCfJ, sec LIIHJU Analytical thinking; comrut with ("orrelative thinking. 16-17 Anceston: :ucauion, 119; construction

of pantheon. 44-~. 51. 6,. 11. 78, 198, )17-18; curses, 46; divinarion to. 46- 4" hierarchy. 46, 47-48. 49. 51-$4,198; invocation in !.ill rituals, J•• 47-48, 4\1; linJu t o living humanl, I). ISO; powe r, 46,

4',

rdarion.hipa wit h deKcndant., 68;

rdationships with u.ges, 198-99. sacrificeJ ro, 45. 46, S2. - 54. 62., 1), loJI , J18; temple names. 4S . 45", sa; worship of in Slung. II-lSI.....- 46, ISO; in Zhou period. S9- 681M"il7l. Stt "Iso Spirits Animals. sa Sacrifices; T orerrusm Apollo, 88 Aristotle, 8, Asccruion: of ancCStors, 119; critiques ofbeliC£s, 146--+7,15-+-55; ofGrcek gods, 1u- 14;ofHuangdi, 14)- -+4, 157; ofkingf, 1)6, 1-+[-4a; meaN, :&0[,116; politial implicaciollJ, 161, 164-155; surveys of cosmos, aI9-10, all. &t also Immortality; Liberation; TrueMan Ascension ru.rratives: cosmologies, all; Greek. :&0)--+, 1al-14, Han tUU, :&04; hi.ltorical context, all- 14; language, 119-10, 181, 181; tdatiollJhip [0 shamanism, :&01; scholarly views of. 101, :&01: ShiWtll,l[9; .imUlritiell

346

INOBX

among. :n'()-~I; simllaritietl to arguments ofJQIIgsbi. 2.44; dme period, aoa- }; W arring States textS,:I.04 Anrobiology. }a-n Amens: empire. 1)}-)4; Slcirophorit. , ... Sec 1/00 Greece, andcnt AugtUClU. emperor orROme. l ll, ala Az:ia1 Periods, II. 11, 18-19 Ban,Pi.60

Beclcwith. Mutha, "30 Bilsky. wIer Jametl. SS. 60 Bill riru.a.l. 14-}S. n. "'-P t'GSJim Bodde, Derk. [04 Bodies, $a Form 80 Dong gui. 61

Book ofChangu. see Yi (Book a/Chilngel) Book ojDocllmtnlS, as. Sousser, Wilhdm, ao) Bremmer,Jan. 8.40. 94

Bronze Age: cosmology. ) 1; scholady vicW$, )1; shamanism.:I.01. Su "lui Shang period Bronze inscriptiolU. 57-6'] pmim Caesar, 1)1 Capiulism. 5- 611, 1 CltlFiu I114trilmllli.l1cs d reLI t;"", tk lKoximirl JIIIIS 141 anll( .",itnM

(Granet),ls8 Cauldrons, bronze, 6) Gunl thinking. 18 Chang Hong. 30} Chang. K c., 15-16, 2.1, )[-.4 0

p
47.54.76.81-8),86,94-9$.104 -5. 111. ISS. :1.02., ao) Changshan, lOS Chen Mcngjia. B Cheng. Emperor. JoS.)1I Cheng. King. 58-59. 66- 157

INDBX

Cheng Tang.. 46 Chi Song:.:i. 118 Ching. Julia. lS-)6. 40. S~. 76. 81-8).

..

Chong Yu. 138- j9 Christianity. I« Protestanrism Chu. nue of. ,..6-4' Chslci. un; "Yuan you~ 101. 117-11 ,..,1sim. 141. l.S7 ChM"qiMf"" /M (Dong). -rongld xiangdong.."~-92

Cities: capitals. l.ll- n. )09. )14; cosmologial models. }2--"}}; dC\'dopment Of.12-n.}8. 4ln; founding of Luoyang. 58-59. 66, 184. )09, ) I}, l17. Set 11110 Setdements Comparative scholarship: Chinese and Western cosmologiell. 7-8, 12- 1}. 10}. 311-a); essentialist model, 8-9. 10, 14-a4 ,..,SJim, lZl. )1); evolutionary frameworks, 9-14, 18-::1.1, l}-l~. SS-S6, 158-60.}22, )2); W eber's method, 5-6. 13, 19 Confucianism. 6-7. 8, 20. )8. 141 Confucius: on cultivation of 'Ii, 125; Five Qassia, l.S)-S4; on Heaven. 98-101; lack of mandate to be ruler, 291, 298; UI"]II, 97-101, 117-18.llS-}6, 1)9. 180; on sacrifices, 117-18; s.acri6ces made, 97- 98; as sage, 1)7.lS}. 296; Spi"g a"d A M1Mmll AIIII"u. al9, 290. 19l , 196. 198; views of spirits, 91-99 Cook Ding. 129 Corrdarive cmsmologies: ancestors, 1\19; descent from single ancelltor, 16~70 P'I'lim, 181, 1\18-99. lOO. }18; development of. 56, 149- 51, IS), 159; goals, 200; Granet on, 9. 146, 147; Greek, 91-93; in Hllai"lI"zi, 284-86; negative views of. 10; oppolition ro,

160.199-200; political implica.rions, 149-50, 179, 168-69, alS-86; potential divine powers of humans. 17577; references [0 sacrifice. 181; relatiOIU of Heaven and humans. 19094, 298-}00: Raetz on, 20. 11; scholarship on, 146. 147-S1.}2O; shamanism as precursor, 3S-}6, 8181,86- 87,95; ofT" iyi h"i ,hili. 115)- 64; universality. 36. 147: in W arring States period. 151, 167, 188. 191-98; Western vie~ of. 24. 39-40; of Western Z hou, 55. 56. 57. St~ "lJO Monistic cOllmologies Corrdarive thinking: association with centrali~d states, 2}6; in China. 17. 18, )1. H. 148. 149, 236; continuity in, 1154; contrast with analytical thinking. 16- 17: in H an period. 2go; lack ofinfluence. 1}7: seen as primitive. ISS-56; seen as regression, w; universality. 147: in Warring Sratell period, 164, 2)6 Cosmogonies: "Jin&$hen" chapter of Hu"illa"zi. I, 1.-}. 145, 170-71,2721); of Laori, 1155; origins of music, 174; spontaneous beginning.. 145; T uyi (Great One), 160-61; Xici Zhwll,I90-91

COlImologies: anthropologicallitudy of, 146; in aKension Iitenrure. l:U; hued on 'Ii. 80; Bronze Age. )1; cit ies modeled on. )1-}3; comparison of Chinese and W estern, 7-16 Jim, l'.19. 119-10; competition within cultures, 157. 160. 157-S8. 190; early Chinese. 145-46; Greek, 19. 88-9). 95, 119, 20).110. hierarchical, ]1]. organiJmic, 1-1, 81, 164; Polyntlian, 2)0; rational. 11.-1))

,..,1-

347

roles of humans, JI). ]14. )17: separation of human and divine. I}, 21. 19. 7)-74, 87- 88,89-91; theistic, 18, 11,144, 146; in Warring States period. 96-97, 147. 179; Western. 7-8. 11-1).11,101.311- 1). Str a&o Correlative cosmologies; Monistic cosmologies Culanu, l oan. w) Cultural·esuntialist model, I« Euenrialist modd Cultural formJ (wen). 18). 188 Culture: uges' role in creation of. 191 Da Bing. 261, 268 Da Yi. 46 DumoN, 91.. 93

Da"ltS d Iigcndu de r.. Chine ,,"eienne (Granet"), ;1.17 Dloism: ascension concept, 101, 10.; divinization. 11.0, 204 -Daren fu" (P rose-poem on the G reat Man; Sima Xiangru ).141 - 42

.0.:. Yu di"" 59 Deities, I« Di; Heaven; Spirits Detienne, Marcd, 74, 89 Dtwlopmc"f and Dtclinc Chinuc Cos· molofy (Henderson), 149-50 0;: comparison to Zew, 7S; power, 48-49; rdatioN with hullUlU. 4141,51, n, S4-SS, 7S, 106: rdatioN with Zhou kings, 151, 62, 64; in Shang pantheon. 40, 41-41, 48-49; worship of. in Qin period, 117. Sec also Heaven Di Kongjia, ]01 Di T aiwu, 301 Di Wuding.. ]01 Di W Uyi.)OI Diomedtl. 88

of

,.,

IN DBX

Dionyuu, 89. l}S DionysilU ofHdicamUllU, uS Disposition. 2.7 1-1 1 Divination: to an,esto rs. 46- .. 7; goals. 43. 198; oppc>Jirion to, 17), 18" in

Qin empire. 1m in Shang period. 34-35. 4O-'U ; ,upport in Kin tfNall, "9-'WO l"lJIim. 1511. )'9; support of

Xunzi. Ib-8} • •87-88, 195'. I ~, 31\1.

in W ucing States period. 96 Divinizarion: available to all,167:

,,0,

dailYU of self-, ) -
of eueru:e,

l1 3. 114:

control of n.acu rt

by humans, }, ::1.59. *-66; in Daoism,. llO, l 0 4 : debates on, llIs: in G reece, 87. 88-89. 91-9". Ul; in

Han period. 11 0; Laan's d ail11ll, 1670 in "Neiye.~ 1[3-[9 p.mim. Il3; oppolition ro, 12.}-1,!-. I,U-"" : political implications. 2.6,; potential ofhu· mans, 175-77. 18S. 199: in sacrifice. 188-89: of uges, 172.. 18S. 186-S" 163, 2.78, llI)-h; through .d[.

cultivation.}. ~S. ~9-60.:I.66, :z.II}. 192.; unduuanding of Pivot, 189;

Xunzi on. ISs. 186-87. Su

,,/so Ascension; Theomorphic king. ship Dodd!. E. R, 8)-84, 85, 86, 94, 95. 117 Dong Z hongshu: adherence to textual precedent, ~97: eotmology. ::1.0. l!9-9S. : 1.91-)00. )14. )::1.0- : 1.1: criti· cism of rulers. ::1.517, }15I; memorials to emperor. ::1.9::1.-91, )00. }11 Dualism: of fonn and .pirit. ::1.051. ::I.al; in Greece. 84. 86, ::I.O}: of Huven and &rth, 171, 171-7); in Shiwcl1. 1051, l l}, }lO: views of kingship. n6- a8. In: in Wutern thought. 14

,.,

IND B X

Dumeril, Georges. u6-l!. u5I. lB. l}l11 Durkheim. Emilc. 146. ISS Egypc.ll E1iade. Mircca. }l-n.}4. }6, 42.11. 8S,

=

Empedodu, 84. 88- 95 ptusim, 1I5I.}1O Empires: centraliution: }O}. lOS: emer· gence of. lS8; G reek, l H-}6, ::1..4711; jusrific:u:ion. 1451-50; opponena. ISO. 3.45-48. }OO; rnnsgressivc ionon· tion and. ::I.}4. ll5 Eno. Robert. 48, 54-55, 60, In Epics, Greek.}9 Essence (fil1g). 1051-11: concentrmon. l[O-II; distinction from form. lO9; in humans, 110, 114. 1::1.6, 170. 17l: longevity gained. with, l 07-8; origin in Heaven. 171; rdationship with Iji. 1051. III; relationship with spirit and One. 1751: o(True Man,l! I- 11 Esscntialist model of comparativc scholarship, 8-51, 10, 14-14 p
Fua.m. ::I.}}11 Fate: acceptance of. 111, :tS6-57: MOMI view, 10) Fenyin. }IO. }II . }I} Fiji: emergence of state, U9-}0; sacri· fica. 196-97; social srrucrure. 1$6. wars, ::I.)). Stt "Iso Polynesia First Emperor. alignment of univcne, ::I.'J.S.l!}. ::1.94; criticism of. ::1.41, l ll : divinizarion daims. :tS6;fal1~ md, ::1.)9-40, 14l, }06; interest in immortality, : I.}9-40, l.4l: rituals, 146- 41. ::1.58; sacrifices. ll8. }04: ti· dc, l40 First problclrultic thinking. 18 Five auslcs. ::I.46,lSl-H Fonn: alignment of. ::1.7)-74: com rol by foll1~hi, : 1.45; dUtina:ion from esu:ncc, lO9; earthly origin. '17'1: ofhulrulns, 110; liberation from, :1.11-17 p
'"

Fu Xi. 169. ::1.70 Fung Yu·ian. 8, 9- 10, 18. lOS Ganquan. )10. )11. }I} Geettt. Clifford, S6 Gin:tburg. Carlo. 84 Gods, J(t Di; Heaven; Spiri~ Gongbo Liao. 99 Gongsun Qing. l4}- 44 Graham. A. C, 16-11, ll. }I, n . 81-83. 86.116, 147, 148, 149, 156 Granet. Marcel. 8-51. 16. 11. 11.}'1. 146. 147, IS8- 60, 181. '1 00, 12.6-)0 p
,0'

Greece. ancient: a.sceruio n nacrarives, '10)-4. '1 U -'14: Axial Period. II; comparisons to China. 51-10, 119. }lO. )u: conflictS between humazu and gods. )9; co.mologiu. as-9}. 95. 119. '10). JlO: development of scientific t hought. 155; diviniurion dainu. 8,. 88-89,9::1.-94.117. au- a); dualism, 84.86, '10); empire, a)3- )6. 'l47n: epics, 19: IinkJ between human and divine, 91-9); philosophy, 8)-84. 87; ritual spccialis~. 88, 117: .acrificu. 7).74,89-91.9): separation ofhu · man and divi ne, I}. 7)-14, 8, -88, 89-91: shamanism. 8)-84, 86-81, 94.

"

Gu Yong. )1::1. Guan Yifu, IOS-9 Guang Chengzi. 114- [6. 151 C"oIl1zi, "Neiye-; comparison to H,,";· l1al1zi.165, '176: comparison to Shi· WCI1, '1 08-9; comparison to Zhuang. :ri, 1'16, 1)0-)1; cosmology, 80, 10914.115-11, lOS. }18; definition of spirir, 111; liberation. 168-69. ::1.13; meditation techniques. 11; opposi. tion to divination. 187: philo,ophical prngram. 2.05: sdf-cultivarion. 12.6. 118.l.4}: Idf-diviniution dainu. 111- 19 p
.

CII"lIli, ·Xinshu"; «lmparison to HlloI;' I1lIl1ti. : 1.76, 178.18}; comparison to ShiIWI1.108-5I. '11'1-1): co,mology. 171. lO8. 157. }11; diviniution. 110. '178. l18; opposition to divination. 181' sdf·cultivation. 118; · Xinshu. shang." 170, 171; · Xinshu. Kia: 170-

"

CliO!", ·Chu yu. xia: 104- 51. 1115, 118

,,0

INDBX

Hall, David L , [7-18, ::1.1, :1.:1., 1.}, 147-48, 151 ,15 8

Han Feizi. :l6g Han period: ascl!ruion nlrrarives. :1,04, cenrraliurion of empire. l OS; cor-

INDBX

Hesiod: T/xogo"y. 73-14. 75-76 Hcxagranu, 19) He t im, 66-67

Hillory ojChi"ClC PhilolOphy, A ( Fung). 8

relarivt chinking. 149; cosmologies.

Hider, Adolf, 2))" H omer, 88

10,11,147.237. :1044. 146, l57 -S8,

H ong Meng. 111

2.89-95. lin criticism of rulers, 2-97.

Hou Ji, 63. 68-75 paSJim H ou-ro. }08

decline of state, 307-8; opposition to empire, l4S - 48; rejection of thcomorphic kingship. }17. 319; sac-

rifices. 1.4[, 2.45, ~8, 2.87. JOO, }0415 passim, }[9; rheomorphic

kingship

daims, 240-4:1., ::1.69 Humony. 56, ' 74-75. ::1.64. }10 219-}0, lB;

Heaven: acceptance of order of, 134. 1}6, 139. 144; alignment of universe. a93; conflias with hum;rns, [}6-40, Confucius on, 98-101; continuity

with humaniry. 35; Mohist view, 101-a, u8; patterns of, [19-35 passim, '96,155-56, :1.78-79. 193. :1.94,

~98-

99; 'Ii of. 2.07; rel ations with humans. I}I-)~. )1); relations with kingJ. 54. 60.61.101-2. 198. ~IO.)IO; in Zhou cosmology. 56. Sec ,,/so Ascension Heaven's mandate: accepcance.I}8. ~98; Confucius on. 98-99; lack of, for Confucius. ~97. 19B. for wiers, ~9798; for sages, ~9). ~9S; for Zhou kings, 54. 57-60, 61, 65 Hegd. Georg Wilhelm Friedrich, a)I". )0",

H enderson, John B., :14. 149-50 Hera. 91 Heracles, 2)5

cension; Diviniwio n I ndia: Axial Period. II; Greek conquests, 2)5; separ.l.tion of human and divine. 13; Vedic soma sacriflces. $2 Jade CO"g,}5 Jakobson, Roman, 147 Jaspers. Karl. II. 11. 19 Ji Xian, 122-2}, 125. I}O

~59-60;

Jian W U.124 Jiang Yuan, 68-75 paSJim

ership, 164, )19; "Yuandao," 161-67 HUd;lIallzi, "JingJhen": alignment of

Harper. Donald, lO$, l06

14), )1); types, a44-45. Sec alJO As-

ingJ. 160; cosmology. 159-60. ~6465, :168, 271.184 -86; "Dixing." }-4. "Lmming." 168-70; "Q isu: ~18; self-cultivation. ~66; view of ruI·

Hal1$hu (Dong), ;1.93-98.}1I

Hawaii: emergence of s[arc, sacrifices, l }O, 2.88

Huainan. kingdom of. 186

Hu"i"a"zi: banle of thcomorphic be-

I mmortality. lack ofi nteresr in. 277; means of 2tuining. ~39 - 45 pa lli m. 257; wiers' interest in, 2,)9- 40. 241,

form and universe, ~13-15; compariso n to Gu,,"ti, 276, 278, 2.83;

ji"K' sec Essence "Jingshen: see Hllai1l
jillKyi"K (alignment and orientation): in

comp:uison ro Zhuangzi. 271-78. 2.8a-84; cosmogony, I. 2-), 145,

ascension narratives, 219-2.0. 221; by Great One. 162, 163-64; by Heaven, 19); of Heaven and Earth. 112, 273-

~70-71 . 172-13; cosmology, )-4. 271,

75; of human body, 27}-75; by hu-

272-73, a78.lS~-84, 185; divini;u_ tion claims. :1.75-77; liberation, 181; no rmative panems, lS); True Man,

mans. ~62-63. )12-1}; by ruler. 215, a41. 2.8), 294; by spirits, I. 2- ). ~71,

279-82.284 Huangdi: ascension. 14}-44. 257; associations with emperors. )0). )01; dialogues with, 161-69, 206-16 paslim. ~51' ordering of world. ~68-69. 270; owl em ble m, 159; sacrificial system. )07 Hubert. Henri, 51-S~, lS8 Hubris, ~33-34 H u gui, 64-6$ H uizi, 1)1 Huzi.l)o H rgiene practices, 205

lS]; in SpillK a"d AUIUm" 11."""/1, 296; surveys before construction, a, :171,2.84 Kamchameha,

ln

Kang. King. 59 Kant, I mmanud. 157

K"Ib..rmoi, 92 Kcightlcy, David N .• )6-40, 45-54 !"'JJim, 73. 77, 78.IO~, 10), 10$. 317 Kings: advised to transcend world, U~; capitals. ~.12-n.]09, }14; criticism of. 252-5]: dynastiC cycles, )01; hereditary, 137-}8; ordering o f world. ~99; powers over nature, l25. 241- 42; rdatlonship with

194-9S.

'" Heaven, 10 1 -~. 198, 210.]10; relations with spirit.!:, 50; roles in an cient China. 56; "S{ranger.~ 12.8- )0. 2}}: true nature of, 178-79; universal rulership.17:1

Kingship: criticism of. 164, 169; development in C hina. 159, u 7-lS. ~30, 2]6; dualistic concepcion. n6-2.8, 2n; origins, ~lS-)o. S« ajlO Empires; Thcomorphic kingship Kingsley, Peter. 84 Kinship structures, 156. IS8 Kuan Shu. ]06 Kuang H eng. 308- 17 p<mi," Laozi. 141. 264; compa rison to T aiyi shtllg lhui. 165-6"]; cosmogony, 165; cosmology, 165-70 paSjim, )18: divinization clainu, 16,. on harmo nization of humans and nature. 149; on sages. 166-67. 198-99 Levi-Strauss, Claude, 146-S9 paSJim,

18).

'00

Li. King. 64-65 Li Hei, 167-69, 214 Li Shaojun. l4), 244 Lian Shu. 1:l4-aS Liberation: from bonds. ~13; in Daoism, a04; from form, lU-171I1wim. ~4a, 257.26,. meaning in Hlla;"d"Z;. 2.81; in "Nciye," 168-69; of sages. 171; techniques, 218; Zhuangzi on, I}}, 136. ~17, 257. 167. S« alJO Ascension; T ranscendencc Liezi, 11),

1~4,

1)0

L~i, "Ji fa: 96- 97. 309

Ling. King. 246-47, 256, }O) Liu An, lS6 Liu Xiang. ) 11 wVY,2lS

I NDBX

lS'

Logk. [54-55

Longevity: dialogue in GII~"Kli, :115-16, dialogue in Shiwrn. 106- 11; of spirit.

'"

Lu Jia.1
See

also XinJII Lu Sheng. 139 Lu 8 0 Donggui. 59

Lii Buwri. I'~ 17). 1)6 LUll!". 97-101,117- 18,

1)5- )6, 1)9. 180

Luoyang. founding of. 58-59. 66, :&3 ... 109. )1). }11

Usbi chlm.,ill, 11:1.-14, 1)6-)1; "!kll' shrog." 175-78, 199. 1:1.1; "Dayue: 174-15; 1ic shu: In; "Lumen: 17879; ·Wugong." 180-8[; "YoUlhi." 145

Luyang. Duke of. 168 Macrobiotics, l OS Mai r. Victor, 84- 8S. 86, 101

Major. John. Uio Mao. Duke of, 60 Maogong ,jingo 57 -58 Maori,IS7

Man:. Karl. )0"," M:utcn of uuldrons, 6) Masten: of formulas. see FllllgUn Mausa, Mated , 51- 51, 146, ISS. lB8

Mencius: acceptance o(fatC,lS6;

;alignment described by. 1.; conflict between Heaven and humans, 1)640. l'U - "4, 199;

cosmology. 140. 141,

141; criticism of rulers,1S1; goals. 1)5;

on H eaven', mandate, 198; narora!·

urn, 140-4). 144; path to sagehood, 134. 1}6. 196; pacterru ofHuven. 196. ass; powen of sages. 177-78. as5; all sage. Il8. 139; on sdf-cultivation. 134-}5; sim.ilaritiCi to ConfuciUl. 1)5 M esopotamia. 13

Milit2ry campaigns: Huven', mandate. 60; invocation of ancestors. 47 M itra-Vanilla: tssai !Ilr Mill{ rt/'TiKII14'

rioll! illdo~llropUlIlIt! dt 1<1 JOllvtI'lIilldi (DumC:z:il). n6-'18. 13J11 M iu Ji.}05,}06 M ohisrs: on sacrifices. 101-4. 118; view ofHuvtfl. 101-a. .-i8 Mormtic cosmologies: Confucian. 6-',; continuity ofhull'Wl and divine, I), 16. n , 35, 51, u8-w. a57. 260; dis· continuity in. 310-11; in Greece, 889l, SIS, 119, ao}, lW; in Gllllllti, 171. ~; in HIlOillllllti, a71, a73. 178; of Lu Jia. 148-51; ofMencius and Zhuang:ti. 141; in "Neiye,~ 109-[ 4, 115-17, l18; of opponentS of em pire. 145- 48; in opposition to dominant practices. 119; origins. 8a- 8}; sdf· divin ization cbims. 171; similarities berNeen humans and goch. [5; Weber's view of. 6-7. Stc "lUI Corrda· (ive CO$mologies Monogenetic systtrm, IS}-6o pOUlilll. 169-70. 196-98, 199 Morality: all human invention. 144; of IUture, 141; potential of humans. 135-)6 M o(e, Frederick, 1-1. 14-15, al ,}I, 81, 96, 141, 141 M ountains: as axis mundi. )1; men· phon.), IS9; sacrifices on, }Ol, 3OS; spirirs of, 96-97,14} Moti, lol- 4 Mu. King. 59, 60 MWiic, 174-75 My,Slolini. Beni(o, 1}3" N ames, 16a-69 p4uilll

I NDBX

Nacuralism: oELaozi, 167;ofM enciWi. 140-43,144; of Zhuangzi, 140-4},

.,

Na(u re: connol by spiritS. a6a, a65-66. 174; creation by Great O ne. 161-61; harmony in, 175; morality of. 141; ~fttrns of. 18)-84. 196; spirits of. 43, so. n, 96-97, }18; in Zhou CO$.

mo.Iogy,56 - , rdationship with humans: agriculture. 4a- 4); evolution of. 19-ao; human COntrol, 78, 186, 156, a6a-6}, 166. l!ill, 194-95; kings' control, ns, 140; linked through 'Ii, 149; music all muns oE regulating nature, 175; (ole of cultu re, 188; sages' power over. Isa; sages' understanding of. 161- 63.149-51; settlements, 41-41,

"

Needham,Joseph, 14. 15, 164,190 "Neiye: see GII""ti, "Neiye" Neslis.9 1 NiC""''''MIlII ElhiCJ (Aristotle), 87 ~utna, 117, 1I9, I}I -}a

Nyberg. H . S., 85 Omenology, 154, 191 , 191. 19), 196 Oracle· bone ilUcriprions, 34.}8-49 p!ui""ss Orientation, see Jillg Jillg (aligntnent and oritfllation) Thr Origill IInJ GO
"

Orphics, 89-90 Pankenier, David W" SS-57, 60 Paper, Jordan, aol Patte rns (Ii), 18}, 184, 188 Pcmlc chilloi", L.I (G ranet). 8-9, [46,

n,

'"

Pericles,I14-}S Persia: ucClUion literature. 10}. Sec ~IUJ Scythia Peterson, Willard]., 190, 193 PlHIcJrw! (Plato). ul- a} Philolophy: C hinese. 8, 141-4a, lS I- sa. aos-6; Greek. h-h. 87 Pindar, 88, 90 Ping. Empero r, }Il Ping Yi, 162. Pivot, 189, 190, [99-2.00, 16),184 Plato. !il}, 119, ao). au- a) Plutarch, 118, l)l-n Polygenetic systems, 1S},IS6-S7, 160,

,,.

Polynesia: cos tnologies, l)O; emergence of state, 119-)0; kingship, 2.1}; monogenesis, IS6, 196-97: polygene.i.\:, IS}, 1516, Stc ~IUJ Fiji Poo M u-chou. SI. 10) Primitive cultures; ~Xil "'"lIIii. )1. ll,15: corrdldve thinking. ISS-S6; rocemism. 151-54, 156 Prolcgo",cII" to A"y Fwl1l7C MCf"phylicl (Kant), [57 P rotnethetu, 73. 74, 75 PrOtestantism: contrured to Confu· cianism, 6-1; Weber o n, 5-611 Punishtntflts: creadon of. 106; in Qin empire, 164

Pythagoru. h

Qi: cosmolog)' bued on, 80; cycles of. 107,109-10; oE Htaven and unh, W7; in humans. "4-15, [IS. I}O. "71: u link between humans and nature, a49; meaning. 10!il; Meru;l1U on, 1)4; rdationship (0 essence, 109, III; rda· tiolUhip to fortn, 16s: utilization of, III- I)

354

INDEX

Qi. king of, 138 Qian Qie, :wS Qin, nace of. 2}8, }O:l.

Qin empire: capital. 309; ccntt.1liz:zrion, 241.30\1; conuo! of regional cults, 2}8, 140, 1$8, 304, 307. }[9' correlative thinking. 149; cosmologies. In

INDEX

ROct2;, Heiner. 18-24 p,mjm.141-4), Ib, 18), 2.89. )10 Rome: founding of, :1.2.8-29, 231; rulers.

2.72.; divination by. 192; divirili:arion, 172., IS5, IS6-87, 2.6S, a7S. 2.8)-84; Five C la.uics, a46.lS3-54; Heavenly

ll7-)1 p,mim Romulus, 2.2.7-}1 p
patterns followed, a7S-79, 29}, a9S99; Heaven's manooe, a9}, 2.95; Lao-:ti on, 166-67; liberation, 171;

Rong Cheng, 206- 12

}01-3. }04. 307. }[}. 319: Sima

Qim's history 0(, 301-}, }12; unlficadon of St;l.tcs. In. 137-}8, }04. St~

.:also First Emperor

Qu Yuan. :w 2 Rain magic. 190-91 Rarionalism: development in China. 9. Il-I}. [9-20, :I.}. 37,151-51; devel· opment models, n, 56-51; lack of full development in China. 1}- 14: Weber on, $. 5-6/1, 6-7. [}. 55-56

Rituals: hill, )4-35. 37. 47- $l paslim; death. 44-46; exorcism, 44. 62; separation from spirits. 291; rradirional.lb-8}; ofZhou dynasry. 30:1.. Su ,,1$0 Divination; Sacrifi,~

Ritual specialim: bypassing. 116. 16}; critiques of, 98. Ill-a}, I}O, 173, 199; in Greece, 88, 117; opposition 10. 118-19; in Qin empire, 1}7, 139-40; relations with spiritS. 104, 116; responses to, 117-19; responsibilities. 106-7, "7, }18; in Warring States

period. 9$. Sec also P"ngshi (masters offorrnulas) Robinct. Isabdle, 202

nuiry of human and divine, 15; ctiticism ofhyporhesis, )6-40, so, 77,

Rulers. sa Kings

music used. by, [74 - 75; natural patterns found by, 196, aso; non-rolers,

S:!.bines, 22.8-29

1)7,285.297, a99; ordering of world,

hypothesis. 8}-86, 94, 9S; in Greece,

Sacrifices: accounts of origins, 70-71; agonistic dements. 2.88; 10 ancestors. 45.46,52-54,62.73,138, )18; com-

2051-51,155-56, a95-96; patterns brought by, IS4; power, 177-78, asa, ass, 2078; rdationship wirh ancestor, 19$-99; roles, 110-11; as rulers, 159,

8)-87 /XUlim, 94, 95; introduction to

2}6-)7.l.S7-S8; divine kingship, 240, 158; interest in immortality, 239-40; laws md punishments, 164: opposi. rion [0, 245-48; rituals, 2}6, 137. 245. 246-47; ruler's power, 115: sacrifices,

Sdf-divinization, lte Divini2;arion Serriements, 41-4a, 58-59. St~ "Is.:. Cities Shamanism: characteristics, 86; conti-

~rison of Chinese and G reek, 7576; debates on, 308-1}, }[8-[9; dis-

tinction from IOlemism, 151-54. 100;

fcng and sh4n. }OO; in Fiji. 196-97; as gift (do III des view), SI. 10), 2.88;

180. 181; sdf-cultivation, 145, 194-95, 249,2.85; surveys befo re construction, a. 271; undernanding of nuure, 162.-6), :1.49. lSo; undeuranding of

goals. 41, 43-44, 2.98; in Greece, 73, 74, S9-91, 9); in Han period, 2.4'. 145, lS8, 2.87, )00. )04-15 p
Pivot, 190; Zhuangzi on, 131. Set also Kings Sahlins, Marshall, 156. 159, 160, 196-97, a2.8-)0,231

opposition to, 9). 170. 173; Polynesian system, 2.}0; in Qin empire,

S.,va~ Mind, The (Levi-Srt2.uu).IS4

2.)7-)8,145, )02.-), }04, )07, )1), )19; reforms in Han, )11 - 12., )15, )19; rdalionship 10 agriculture, 70, 71-,:1;

Schrempp. Gregory, 157 Schwart:l;, Benj:!.min I., II-I), [7, 19, 31, 141.142..14).150-5),156, [64

San Miao, 106. 108

responsibilities of ritual specialists.

Science, 1S4-5S

106-7; in Shang period, 41-45 pai-

Sci~1K~ "nd

lim, SO- 54 p
xillnK, ISa-8). Stc.,&c Ritual

specialists Sages: advisors to kings, 1)8; Ctution of cultural implements. 191; cultural patterns tt2.lUmiUed., 100, 47; cyclical emergence. 119; disposition,

Civiliza!ion in China (Needham ct aI.), 14

Scythia: ,h2manism., 8}. 84. 85, S6, 94 Second problematic thinking. 18 Self-cultivation: achievement of divine powers,}, 2.SS, 2.S9-60, 266, 2S}, 2.9a;

86,107,117; differences in Chinese and Western views. 15-16; diffusion

China, 84-Ss. as precursor of Chinese rdigion, 16, 76, 81-8}. 86-87, 104-5. aoa; rdationship to ascension narutives, 2.oa; rdationship to corrdacive cosmology. 35-)6, SI-h. 86-87, 95; in Shang period, ))-)5,

}6; Siberian, S}, Ss Shang}i:!., 46, 50 Shang Yang. 269 Shang period: ancestor worship, 38-39, 44- 46.317: bureaucracy,)7. )8-)9, 47-4S; criticism of shamanism hypothesis, )6-40, $0, 77; deities, 40; divinations, 40-4$; founder, 46; lack of imerest in cosmology, S5; masterS of cauldrolU, 6}; rituals, )4-)5. )7, SO- 51, sa, 58, 6}, 77, 151, 1-19; shamanism, })-}5, }6; Sima

Qian's history of, }Ol Sh4~glhll, 317; cosmology, 120; "Duofang." 6[; "Luogao: 309; "Lii xing." 106; references [0, )08, )09; "Shao gao," a, 58,66; "Shun dian," )00-)0]

114-15. 12.6. 2.83; MenciU$ on, 1}4-3s;

Shangihu d"2:huan. :1.9:1. Sh4l1haijing, Wuzang shanjing." 96-97

power art.:Lined.. 145, 178, 180-8[, 204), 2.66,2068,2076- 77; p ractices, :1.07,

Sh:!.o, Duke of, 57, 2.84, )17 Sh2oweng. 2.4},)06

:1.18-19; by uges, 145, 194-95, 1-49, 2.85; Warring States texts,:r.08; Zhuangzi on, 1):1.-))

Shen, lte Spirits

arguments ag.:LiILn, 194-95; goals,

Shen Buhai. 169 Shen Gong. a43

",

INDBX

$hi (group): critiques of sacrifice and divination, ] 18

SIn (text), no

Ship: critimm of Confucius. 99; criti· cism of ,acrillcial .ystem,

)00, 111;

description cfOong Zhongshu. :l90; dytlDric decline narrative. 3'''; on f~l1gsbi. :l3!i1, :1.41-44; - Fengshan

shu:

:l)7,

a)8, 141, :1.43-4'" 187.

)00-101; Fint Emperor and spiritll. 140; Han emperou, 140-41, )19;

Qin ucrifices, :1.)1. :l)8.}ll.) I); -Qin Shihuang benji,· 139. 140; on worship ofHuangdi.1.13-44 Shijillg. 6)-64; cosmology. 1:1.; wogtai; :I.; qUOtariolU from, 195; references

to, loB; 'Sheng min: (58-730 15-76;

"ZhouJong." 6S

Shi/iwj;IIg. ' Chcngh," 16';-70, m, 198, :l.1}.114

Shiwtll (Ten questions): alignment with Heaven. :1.11, 119; ascension. 101;

comparison (O G WOIlIli, 2.03-9. :1.1:1.I); dialogue on longevity. =6- n ; di· viniudon daims.106; dualism in. ~.

ll). 310;

purpose, lO5-6; ques-

d on fou[, 106-1 4 p
310; question six, :l.06

Shun, 16$. )00-301, lOS

Siberian . hamanism. 8). 8s Sima Qian. see Shiji Sima Tan. )06 Sima }(iangru. 141-41 Sirin. Nathan. ~ Skirophoria.74 Smith. Jo nathan n Smith, William Robertson. SI, IS8 Social devdopmem uaga. 37 Sovereignty. :!.l1- 19 Spirit journeys. Jtt As("elUion

z..

IND EX

Spirit-men. 11)-19 piluim. I) l S piritS (.Ibtn): alignment and orientarion acriOIU. I. 1-). 171. 18); anthropomorphizing. SJ. 1911. 199. 160;

Confucius on. 97-99; ("on[1'ol by

J.mgshi. ~3, :1.4.... 1570 evolutionary perspective. l}-:I.4; exorcisms. .... 61; hieraKhy, l37; liberation from forms. 111-11. 113-1~; meanings of term. 11-13, 109, 171, 18S; nature, ...8. so. S3, 96-97, 318; nature conrrolled. by. 161. 16s. 166. 171. 174; power. S1.-SJ; as pun: essence. 110; rol e in creation. I; Zhuangzi on, 11",-17. &t II~ Ancestors; Di; Heaven - . rdatiolUl with humans: debates on, 9.- ~; with kings. so, 6l, 67, lJ7, 1.1; in Shang period. 40-.1. SO. SISS. S8, 78; through ritual specialist•• 10• • 116; in Zhou period. 5.- 57, 60. 67.11,131. &( II ~ D iriniUEion _. separation from humans: in ancient o..Unllu. 13; in Chinese tutS, IOS-9, 116.170.11., 15S, 314, 3170 conflicu. 39.78. 1)6-... 0. 1.}-.... 199; opposition 10, 89- 91; in Polynesia, 197. 1)0; in Wat. I}. 11, 73-7 .... 87- 88. 89-91 Spring and Ailiumn Ann.
Theomo rphic kingship: amhropologialliterature, u6; criricism of, ~I, 156, 157.169.300, }19; devdopmem in China. ll6.158, )19; emergence. 1} 0; in G reek empire, 1)S-)6. :I.47n; in Han period. 140-41, 169; in Hlllli"lInti. 28s; in Qin empire, 1]6. 140, 256. 258; rejectio n by Han cou rt , 317, 319; in ROme.l}2; spontaneous power. 179; th rough sacrifice. 188- 89 Thr:u:e: .hamanism, 8) Thucydide..l))-lS Tianwanggui. 61, 61, 64 T i,"1U1l1 (Pluo), 5'3 TitalU, 89. &t IlUo Pro metheus Totemism. ISl-5.,156.IS9,loo Tradition: sacrifice u.I81-IJ Transcendence: in China. 11-13. 14}; connection with patteTTlli of urn verle,18s; emergen("e in ancient civilizations, II, 19; of(orms. 216.157, 175'-14 /'I'lli,"; of Heaven and Earth. 210; ICholarly viCW$, 141; seen as abIent in China. 17 T tigrams, 19a. 19} True Man, Ill, 235', 175'-82.184, 18S Tylor, Edward, 51 Valeri, Valerio, an, 188 Vemanl, Jcan -Pierre, 74. 85', 90

Taich
W .alcy, A rthu r. 202 Wang Aihe.1-4 Wang Mang. )12 Wlng Qiao, a18, al5' Warring States period: ascension narratives, a0 4; co rrdative cosmologies, 167, 188. 197- 911; co rrdative thinking. 16., 1)6; cOlmologitl, 21, 96-97, 1.7,

'51 lSI. 179; divination. 96; dice practices, 105; popular and philosophical rutS, aos-6; rdigious beliefs, 81-8); Mer-

ship. 17a-7); sacrifices, 96. 5'7- 911; sdf-cultivation. 108 Way. the. 111-12. 16s-66, a61 Weather, control of. 15'0-5'1 Weber. Max, 5-6", S- 7, I, la, I}, 15', 20, 21.31. )8, SI, 142. )10 Wen, Duke of Qin, 302 Wen. Emperor. 237. 241 Wen, King: Heaven's mandate, 58; as modd for laIer kings. S5'; reign of. 15'4; rdationship with Di, 61, 62. 64: s.acrifices to, 61-6) W estern cultures: cosmologies. 7-8. 11-1).21,20), }11-1); separation of hu man and divine. I), 11, 7)-74, 875'1pilJlim. &t ~Iso Greece, ancient W estern Zhou. stf Zhou. Western Wheadey, Paul, )1-33. 34.)8, )5', 4:3.11, 54,56. 184 WctrIJ gfThougbt ill Allcitlll Chi"G, 'T'Ix (Schwartz). II Wu. Emperor: advice (o,l6sI; ("ou~. 186; Dong Zhongshu's memorials 10. 19a-9II, 300;f~ngshi and, 3OS,)07: interes t in immortaliry, 141, 243; sacrifices, 141. lS8, 187. 300, )04- 14 p
",

INDEX

ers.151. 198; opposition to Idr· cultivarion. 156; sages' undemand· ing of nature, lS0; support of divination. 189-:lOO ptJSJim. 191, J Ill "Xinshu, ~ Stt Gwallri. ·Xiruhu· Xmyu (Lu Jia): acrept"am:e offate,1.S657; cosmology. ,....-51. ass-s6, 158; ,"rique of ascension bdiefs. 147.

i""gsbi.

154-SS: critique of 147-+8. 154: ,ritiqucs of rulers, 151-5); role

of sages in wodd. 149-51, loSS: u.gcs and dassicl, lH-S4. lS8 Xunri: cosmology. ISI-h: cultural fomu and putenu, IS)-B.: on di·

Zhou, Western: ancestOrS.)11: capital. 1: conquest, 54. 51, 61-64, 18, 1)8; cosmology, 55, 56; decline, 1\1, )O}-4; Heaven's mandate. 54, 51-60, 61. 6s: omen rdared. to, 1\11: rdarionlhip of spina and humans. 54-51, 60, 6'], 11,1)8; rdarions with ancestors. 64. 6s-63: riru.a1s, ](1)1): rupture with Shang rdigiow beliefs. S4, 51, S\I, 6): sacrifices. 61-6s, 68, 11-18. ga, 1]8, 30)-4; Sima Qian'$ history of. 301; similariries to Shang beliefs. 6s. 6,68.18 Zhollgu~n.

vinindon, [85. [86-8,: foundations,

loa Zhou people: ancestOrS, 6). 68-1a.1),

18}-84: role ofhumaru in cosmos. 18)-8S. 188.189; support of satrifice

Znwlmgzi: allusions to. a11, 280: ueen·

and divination, Ih-8}. 187-88, 19S. 199. )19:

"Ti:m1un; lh

Yan Hui, 99. 139 Yao, loB, '59 Yeadey. Lee H , [40, 141 Yi (mciatt minister). 137. I}I

Yi (Book ofChIlllga), 19Q-941"'JJim, lOCI, lSI, 1S1-S:ur. Sa: also Xid thu411

Yi Yin, 1)7. Il8

Yi Zhi. 301 Y"llholllhw, ·Shifu: 61 Yeng. In-}B. )01-11 ptzsJim Yu,g6, }Ol

YunJiang. al1 Zeus, 11. 14. 1S. 8\1, \II, 1U Zhang Tan, )08-11 plmim Zhao, King ofChu, 105-6 Zhou, Duke of, 1]1, 1)8, 1\11: founding of Luoyang. )0\1, )1); on Heaven', mandate, 6[: usage, 141

"

sion narratives, 101: comparison to Hwai~~IIli, 111-78, :1.81-84: com· parison to "Neiye: 116, 1)0-)1: co.smoiogy, 1:1.8. 1)1. In: critique of ritual specialistS, IU-1), 1]0: "rnner Chapcen." 11).:1.66.111: on libera· rion. Ill. 1)6. 111, a57.:I.6']: natural· ism. 140-4). '4+; opposition to human claims of divine power. la) 2.4. 14). I ...... 17\1: "Outer Chapters: ao6. aI4-16; philosophical program. :lOS: relationship of humaru and things. 111-:1.8, 1)1; sages. 1)1; sdfcultivation, 116. 1]1-33: on spina. [14-a1. l:l!-}O

Zi Si, la1-:l! Zi YOU.la7-18. al) Zifu Jingbo. \1\1 Zoroutrianism.8s ZuJi. )01 Zlioznwall, \16, 146

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