中英雙語話中國歷史名人 第40期:朱熹

Zhu Xi (1130~1200), whose courtesy name was Zhonghui and literary name Hui'an, was born in Wuyuan, Huizhou (now part of Jiangxi Province) in the Southern Song Dynasty.

朱熹（1130~1200），字仲晦，號晦庵，他是南宋徽州婺源(今屬江西)人。

As one of the most significant philosophers of the Neo-Confucian school in the Song and the Ming dynasties, he held that the universe has two aspects: the formless and the formed. The formless, or li, is a principle or a network of principles that is supreme natural law and that determines the patterns of all created things. This law combines with the material force or energy called qi to produce matter, or things having form. Li is never separable from qi: there is no li without qi and no qi without li.

他是南宋思想家，宋明理學的代表人物，主要學術成就是對理學的發展。在字宙觀上，朱熹持理氣論，他認爲宇宙萬物是理與氣妙合而成的，“理是形而上者，氣是形而下者”。理是看不見的事物的本體，是形而上之道，氣是看得見的物質的質料形象，是形而下之器。合而看，理氣渾然一體; 離而看，理氣又有先後。

Based on this theory, Zhu Xi believed that "it is the interaction between li and qi that human beings are created."

以理氣論爲哲學基礎，朱熹認爲“人之所以生，理與氣合而已。”

In human beings, li (manifested as human nature) is essentially perfect, and defects, including vices, are introduced into the body and mind through impurities of qi.

稟受天地之理爲本性，爲天命之性; 稟受天地之氣爲形體，爲氣質之性。

Thus in reality the human nature embodies the conflicts between “Heaven's laws" and “human desires", and they can never coexist. Therefore, to preserve Heaven's laws and eliminate human desires becomes the core of Zhu Xi's ethical thoughts.

所以，現實人性中存在着“天理”與“人慾”的對立，“天理存而人慾滅，人慾勝則天理滅”，於是“明天理，滅人慾”就成了朱熹倫理思想的核心。

Zhu Xi's concept of li actually echoes the Confucian ethical and moral principles. To preserve" Heaven's laws" means to preserve the hierachical system and established moral values. To eliminate" human desires", on the other hand, is to eliminate the cravings against the feudal hierachical system and moral values.

朱熹之所謂“理”是儒家倫理道德觀念的體現，“明天理”就是要維護封建等級制度和綱常秩序，“滅人慾”就是要清除違反封建等級制度和綱常名教的各種非分的物質欲求。

In this way, Zhu Xi seemed to justify feudalism by channeling humanism into ethics and strengthened the traditional Confucian values.

這樣，朱熹從倫理學角度論證了封建統治的合理性，同時把倫理學安置在人性論的基礎上，並強化了傳統濡家價值觀念。

Zhu Xi's idea of putting ethical principles over physical desires bears some features of rationalism, but it also has a negative side of suppressing individuality.

朱熹以倫理來主宰物慾的理欲觀，明顯具有一種理性主義的特徵，也有壓抑人的個性的一面。