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Chapter 4 of 25
皇极经世
The reason humans can become the spiritual essence of all things lies in the fact that their eyes can receive the colors of all things, their ears can receive the sounds of all things, their noses can receive the breath of all things, and their mouths can receive the tastes of all things. 🌿
Colors, sounds, breath, and tastes are the inherent ontological attributes of all things; while eyes, ears, nose, and mouth are the perceptual functions possessed by humans as the spiritual essence of all things. The ontological substance has no fixed function—only through change does it manifest its utility; function also has no fixed substance—only through transformation is its substance determined. Substance and function interweave and mutually accomplish each other, and thus the principle of humans and things is brought to completion. ☯️
However, humans are also things, and sages are also humans. There exist "things of one thing" that can penetrate the principle of one thing, "things of ten things" that can penetrate the principle of ten things, "things of a hundred things" that can penetrate the principle of a hundred things, "things of a thousand things" that can penetrate the principle of a thousand things, "things of ten thousand things" that can penetrate the principle of ten thousand things, "things of a hundred million things" that can penetrate the principle of a hundred million things, and "things of a trillion things" that can penetrate the principle of a trillion things. Could it not be humans who can penetrate the principle of a trillion things? 🔥
Similarly, there exist "persons of one person" who can penetrate the principle of one person, "persons of ten persons" who can penetrate the principle of ten persons, "persons of a hundred persons" who can penetrate the principle of a hundred persons, "persons of a thousand persons" who can penetrate the principle of a thousand persons, "persons of ten thousand persons" who can penetrate the principle of ten thousand persons, "persons of a hundred million persons" who can penetrate the principle of a hundred million persons, and "persons of a trillion persons" who can penetrate the principle of a trillion persons. Could it not be the sage who can penetrate the principle of a trillion persons? 🌟
From this we know: humans are the highest achievement among the class of things; sages are the highest achievement among the class of humans. Only the highest achievement among things deserves to be called the "thing among things"; only the highest achievement among humans deserves to be called the "person among persons." "Thing of things" is the appellation for the supreme thing; "person of persons" is the appellation for the supreme person. To match such a supreme thing with such a supreme person—who else could it be but the sage? If one says this does not yet qualify as a sage, I absolutely do not believe it. 💎
Why do I say this? Because the sage can contemplate ten thousand minds with one mind, contemplate ten thousand bodies with one body, contemplate ten thousand things with one thing, and contemplate ten thousand generations with one generation; moreover, he can replace heaven's intent with his mind, replace heaven's words with his mouth, replace heaven's work with his hands, and replace heaven's affairs with his body; furthermore, he can understand the timing of heaven above, exhaust the principles of earth below, comprehend the conditions of all things in between, and illuminate all human affairs; and he can also encompass heaven and earth, enter into and emerge from creation, advance and retreat through past and present, and penetrate the inner and outer aspects of people and things. 🌌
Alas! Sages do not appear in every generation, and I cannot see them with my own eyes. Although I cannot see them directly, by examining their aspirations, observing their deeds, exploring their substance, and penetrating their functions, even across hundreds of millions of years, I can still come to know them through reason. 🔍
If someone were to tell me: beyond heaven and earth there exist other heavens and earths and other things, completely different from the heaven and earth and things here—then I cannot know this. Not only can I not know it, even the sage cannot know it. Whenever we speak of "knowing," it means the mind can truly cognize; whenever we speak of "saying," it means the mouth can truly express. Since the mind cannot even cognize it, how can the mouth express it? To claim knowledge when the mind cannot know it is called false knowing; to force speech when the mouth cannot express it is called false speaking. How could I follow those deluded people and engage in false knowing and false speaking? 🚫
This chapter explores three progressively deeper levels of inquiry:
I. Human Spirituality Lies in the "Integration of Substance and Function"
Shao Yong proposes the substance-function view that "sound, color, breath, and taste are the substance of all things; eyes, ears, nose, and mouth are the function of humans." All things possess objective attributes (substance), while humans possess the ability to perceive these attributes (function). The key lies in "substance has no fixed function, only through change does it manifest its utility; function has no fixed substance, only through transformation is its substance determined"—substance and function are not rigidly corresponding, but dynamically interweave through change and transformation. This mode of thinking regarding the "interpenetration of substance and function" is the cornerstone of the epistemology of the Huangji Jingshi.
II. Sageliness Lies in the Elevation of "Cognitive Levels"
Shao Yong constructs a progressive cognitive model from the individual to the universal through the hierarchical structure from "thing of one thing" to "thing of a trillion things" and from "person of one person" to "person of a trillion persons." The sage is not a different species but one who pushes human cognitive capacity to its limit—able to "contemplate ten thousand minds with one mind, ten thousand bodies with one body, ten thousand things with one thing, and ten thousand generations with one generation," achieving holistic interpenetration of cognition.
III. The Boundaries of Knowledge and the Critique of "False Knowing and False Speaking"
The chapter's conclusion explicitly delineates the limits of cognition: things beyond heaven and earth can neither be perceived nor spoken of, and therefore should not be arbitrarily asserted. This is a strict demarcation of the boundaries of speech and knowledge, revealing a rare rational restraint in Shao Yong's epistemology.
From "Sensory Centrism" to "Tool Extension Theory"
Shao Yong's grounding of cognition in the eyes, ears, nose, and mouth can be mapped onto today's context: human cognition is always based on perceptual systems, but modern technology—microscopes, radio telescopes, sensors, artificial intelligence—is essentially the extension and amplification of human senses. 🌐 When Shao Yong speaks of "contemplating ten thousand minds with one mind," he describes an idealized mode of omniscience; today's big data analysis and complex system simulation are, to some extent, moving in this direction.
Hierarchical Models and "Cognitive Depth"
The progression from "thing of one thing" to "thing of a trillion things" can be understood as the capacity to elevate from surface-level information reception to deep-level pattern recognition. Modern cognitive science distinguishes the hierarchy of "data—information—knowledge—wisdom," which bears striking resemblance to Shao Yong's hierarchical model. The "thing of a trillion things" corresponds to a holistic grasp of the underlying principles of all things, analogous to what modern science pursues as a "unified theory." 🧬
"False Knowing and False Speaking" and Critical Thinking in the Information Age
Shao Yong's critique of "forcibly claiming knowledge of the unknowable and forcibly speaking of the unspeakable" holds profound contemporary relevance in an age of information overload. Faced with oceans of information and plausible yet dubious claims, the cognitive humility of "knowing that one does not know" and the awareness of the boundaries of discourse are precisely the core competencies of critical thinking. 📱
The Epistemological Standpoint Behind "Observing Things"
The chapter title "Observing Things" centers on the act of "observing." Shao Yong's "observing" is not passive reception but active reflection with the mind as mirror. The "observing" in "contemplating ten thousand minds with one mind" carries connotations of analogical reasoning and holographic mapping—inferring the whole from the individual, and the past and future from the present. This aligns with the tradition of immanent transcendence in Chinese philosophy, as expressed in "all things are complete within me."
The Deep Implication of the Non-Duality of Substance and Function
"Substance has no fixed function, only through change does it manifest its utility; function has no fixed substance, only through transformation is its substance determined" reveals a profound philosophical proposition: the relationship between substance and function is not static or divisible, but mutually generative through change and transformation. This is consistent with the dynamic cosmological view of the Yizhuan ("the alternation of yin and yang constitutes the Dao") and resonates with modern process philosophy (such as Whitehead's) in its emphasis that "substance is process." 🌀
The Boundary Between Knowledge and Speech
Shao Yong's final discussion of "false knowing and false speaking" touches upon the fundamental problem of philosophy of language: language is the boundary of cognition. Wittgenstein's dictum "Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must be silent" echoes across time and space with Shao Yong's "to claim knowledge when the mind cannot know it is false knowing; to force speech when the mouth cannot express it is false speaking." This sober awareness of the limits of cognition is especially precious in ancient Chinese philosophy. 🎯
| Concept | Description |
|---|---|
| Substance-Function Theory | One of the core categories of Chinese philosophy, sharing origins with Wang Bi's "substance and function share a single source" and Cheng Yi's "substance and function share a single source, the subtle and the manifest have no gap." Shao Yong applies it here to the distinction between humans and things. |
| Observing Things | Shao Yong's distinctive cognitive methodology, distinguishing "observing things as things" from "observing things as oneself," advocating the transcendence of subjective bias to cognize things according to their own principles. |
| Yuan-Hui-Yun-Shi | The cosmological time model of the Huangji Jingshi, dividing time into four levels: yuan, hui, yun, and shi—directly related to this chapter's cognitive interpenetration of "contemplating ten thousand generations with one generation." |
| The Concept of the Sage | The standard of "sage" in the Confucian tradition; Shao Yong redefines the "supremacy" of the sage from the cognitive dimension, mutually illuminating Mencius's "one who greatly transforms is called a sage." |