A Comparison between Wisdom (Zhi) and Deliberation (Gu), Mind (Xin) and Qi in the Mencius and the Zhuangzi from the Perspective of the Hermeneutic Circle

Abstract

The two passages, “Li Lou II” of the Mencius 孟子·离娄下 (Mencius 2A.2) and “Gongsun Chou I” of the Mencius 孟子·公孙丑上 (Mencius 4B.26), have been difficult to undestand for readers of all times. However, according to the hermeneutic circle, i. e., works of the same time must have shared the same concepts, topics, and writing style, if they are to be interpreted from the perspective of the Zhuangzi, these two passages will be easy to understand. Based on this interpretation, deliberation (gu 故) in “Gongsun Chou I” means deliberation or craft, which comes close to the meaning of wisdom (zhi 智) and thus facilitates our understanding of the whole passage. In “Li Lou II,” Gaozi’s words, “If words are not satisfactory to me, I will not let them trouble my mind; if something does not produce satisfactory result in my mind, I will not let them influence my qi 气 ” disclose a spiritual realm as high as that stated in Chapter 12 “Heaven and Earth” of the Zhuangzi 庄子·天地: “Though the world might praise him and say he had really found something, he would look unconcerned and never turn his head; though the world might condemn him and say he had lost something, he would look serene and pay no heed.” What is more, Mencius’ “unperturbed mind (bu dong xin 不动心)” is actually the vast, flowing spiritual realm (haoran zhi qi 浩 然之气) which results from abiding by righteousness, and this realm keeps quite a distance from Zhuangzi’s detached mind in the face of right and wrong, which is achieved by “the fasting of mind (xin zhai 心斋).”

Keywords

the hermeneutic circle / wisdom (zhi) / deliberation (gu) / mind (xin), qi

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