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Capítulo 4 de 25
皇极经世
The reason humans can become the spirit 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 qi of all things, and their mouths can receive the flavors of all things. 🌿
Colors, sounds, qi, and flavors are the inherent substantive attributes of all things; while eyes, ears, noses, and mouths are the perceptual functions that humans, as the spirit of all things, possess. The substantive has no fixed function—only through change does its function manifest; the functional has no fixed substance—only through transformation does its substance become determined. Substance and function interweave with each other, mutually perfecting one another; thus, the Way of humans and things is rendered complete. ☯️
However, humans are also things, and sages are also human. There exists the "thing of one thing" that can penetrate the principle of one thing, the "thing of ten things" that can penetrate the principle of ten things, the "thing of a hundred things" that can penetrate the principle of a hundred things, the "thing of a thousand things" that can penetrate the principle of a thousand things, the "thing of ten thousand things" that can penetrate the principle of ten thousand things, the "thing of a hundred million things" that can penetrate the principle of a hundred million things, and the "thing of a trillion things" that can penetrate the principle of a trillion things. Could the one who can penetrate the principle of a trillion things be none other than the human? 🔥
Similarly, there exists the "person of one person" who can penetrate the principle of one person, the "person of ten persons" who can penetrate the principle of ten persons, the "person of a hundred persons" who can penetrate the principle of a hundred persons, the "person of a thousand persons" who can penetrate the principle of a thousand persons, the "person of ten thousand persons" who can penetrate the principle of ten thousand persons, the "person of a hundred million persons" who can penetrate the principle of a hundred million persons, and the "person of a trillion persons" who can penetrate the principle of a trillion persons. Could the one who can penetrate the principle of a trillion persons be none other than the sage? 🌟
From this it can be known: 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 can be called the "thing among things"; only the highest achievement among humans can be called the "person among people." "The thing of things" is a designation for the supreme thing; "the person of people" is a designation for the supreme person. To match such a supreme thing with such a supreme person—who could this be if not the sage? If one says this is not yet the sage, I absolutely do not believe it. 💎
Why do I say this? Because the sage can observe ten thousand minds with one mind, observe ten thousand bodies with one body, observe ten thousand things with one thing, observe ten thousand generations with one generation; further, the sage can use the mind to stand in for Heaven's will, the mouth to stand in for Heaven's words, the hands to stand in for Heaven's works, and the body to stand in for Heaven's affairs; further, the sage knows the times above, exhausts the principles of Earth below, comprehends the conditions of things in the middle, and illuminates the affairs of humanity universally; further, the sage can hold together Heaven and Earth, enter into and emerge from creation and transformation, advance and retreat with past and present, and reveal the inner and outer aspects of persons. 🌌
Alas! Sages do not appear in every generation, and I cannot see one with my own eyes. Although I cannot see one directly, by examining their intentions, observing their deeds, exploring their substantive nature, and penetrating their functions, even if separated by hundreds of millions of years, I can still come to know them through rational understanding. 🔍
If someone were to tell me: beyond Heaven and Earth there are other Heavens and Earths with other things, completely different from the Heaven, Earth, and things here—then I cannot know this. Not only can I not know it, the sage cannot know it either. Whenever one says "know," it means the mind is truly able to know; whenever one says "speak," it means the mouth is truly able to speak. Since the mind cannot even know it, how can the mouth speak of it? To claim knowledge when the mind cannot know is called reckless knowledge; to assert speech when the mouth cannot speak is called reckless speech. How could I follow those deluded people and engage in reckless knowledge and reckless speech? 🚫
This chapter explores three progressively deepening layers of questions:
I. The Spirit of Humans Lies in the Conjunction of Substance and Function
Shao Yong proposes the view of substance and function: "Colors, sounds, qi, and flavors are the substantive attributes of all things; eyes, ears, noses, and mouths are the functions of the myriad people." Things have their objective attributes (substance), and humans possess the capacity to perceive these attributes (function). The key lies in "the substantive has no fixed function—only through change does it manifest; the functional has no fixed substance—only through transformation does it become determined"—substance and function are not rigidly corresponding but dynamically interweave through change and transformation. This mode of thinking, where "substance and function interpenetrate," is the cornerstone of the epistemology of the Huangji Jingshi.
II. The Sage's Sageliness Lies in the Leap of Cognitive Hierarchy
Shao Yong constructs a progressive model of cognition from the "thing of one thing" to the "thing of a trillion things" and from the "person of one person" to the "person of a trillion persons," establishing a hierarchy from the individual to the whole. The sage is not a different kind of being, but one who pushes human cognitive capacity to its utmost limit—able to "observe ten thousand minds with one mind, ten thousand bodies with one body, ten thousand things with one thing, ten thousand generations with one generation," achieving holistic interpenetration of cognition.
III. The Boundaries of Knowledge and the Critique of Reckless Knowledge and Reckless Speech
At the end of the chapter, the finitude of knowledge is clearly stated: regarding things beyond Heaven and Earth, since they cannot be perceived nor spoken of, one should not assert recklessly. This is a strict delimitation 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 today as follows: 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 "observing ten thousand minds with one mind," he describes an idealized omniscient mode; today's big data analytics and complex systems simulation are, to some extent, approaching this direction.
Hierarchical Models and "Cognitive Depth"
The progression from the "thing of one thing" to the "thing of a trillion things" can be understood as a leap from surface-level information reception to deep pattern recognition. Modern cognitive science distinguishes the hierarchy of "data—information—knowledge—wisdom," which resonates remarkably with Shao Yong's hierarchical model. The "thing of a trillion things" corresponds to a holistic grasp of the underlying laws of all things, similar to the "unified theory" that modern science pursues. 🧬
"Reckless Knowledge and Reckless Speech" and Critical Thinking in the Information Age
Shao Yong's critique of "claiming to know what cannot be known and asserting what cannot be spoken" is extremely relevant in our era of information overload. Faced with a flood of information and plausible but unverified claims, the cognitive humility of "knowing that one does not know" and a conscious awareness of the boundaries of discourse are precisely the core competencies of critical thinking. 📱
The Epistemological Stance Behind "Observing Things"
The title of the chapter, "Observing Things," centers on the act of "observing." Shao Yong's "observing" is not passive reception but active reflection with the mind as a mirror. The "observing" in "observing ten thousand minds with one mind" carries connotations of analogical reasoning and holistic 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, where "all things are complete within me."
The Deeper Meaning of the Non-Duality of Substance and Function
"The substantive has no fixed function—only through change does it manifest; the functional has no fixed substance—only through transformation does it become determined" reveals a profound philosophical proposition: the relationship between substance and function is not static and divisible, but rather mutually generative through change and transformation. This is consistent with the dynamic cosmology of the Yizhuan ("The Commentary on the Book of Changes")—"one yin and one yang constitute the Way"—and also echoes modern process philosophy (such as Whitehead's) emphasis on "being as process." 🌀
The Boundaries of Knowledge and Speech
Shao Yong's concluding discussion on "reckless knowledge and reckless speech" touches the fundamental question of philosophy of language: language is the boundary of cognition. Wittgenstein's maxim—"Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must be silent"—resonates across time and space with Shao Yong's "to claim knowledge when the mind cannot know is reckless knowledge; to assert speech when the mouth cannot speak is reckless speech." This conscious awareness of the limits of cognition is especially precious in ancient Chinese philosophy. 🎯
| Concept | Description |
|---|---|
| Substance-Function Theory (Tiyong) | One of the core categories of Chinese philosophy, related to 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 are without gap." Shao Yong applies it here to the distinction between humans and things |
| Observing Things (Guanwu) | Shao Yong's distinctive cognitive methodology, distinguishing "observing things through things" from "observing things through the self," advocating the transcendence of subjective bias to know things through their own principles |
| Yuan-Hui-Yun-Shi | The cosmological time model of the Huangji Jingshi, dividing time into four levels—yuan, hui, yun, shi—directly related to the cognitive penetration of "observing ten thousand generations with one generation" |
| View of the Sage | The standard of "sage" in the Confucian tradition; Shao Yong redefines the "ultimate" of sageliness from the cognitive dimension, mutually illuminating Mencius's "wholeness that transforms is called sageliness" |