07chinese philosophy and chinese civilization

8/9/2019 07Chinese Philosophy and Chinese Civilization

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MIKHAIL

L

TITARENKO

CHINESE PHILOSOPHY

AND

CHINESE

CIVILIZATION

The ever growing interest in Oriental civilizations and their role

in

the mankind’s spiritu al development has becom e a distinctive

feature of the world humanitarian science. This interest is connected with

the contemporary political science’s general trend to study the civilization

factor in the evolution of nations and international relations. Anim ated

discussions cente r arou nd such problems as vitality of civilizations,

correlation between the various types of local civilizations of the East and

West, and the possibility to harmonize their communication.

As

history

ever more convincingly has proven the tremendous importance of the

spiritual (i.e. non-material) factor in the contemporary evolution

of

man-

kind, the ever more close attention has been drawn to the theme of

Chinese civilization a nd i ts role in the world civilization process. Th e

reason is tha t exactly the spiritual factor has been th e majo r, system-

forming element in the structure of Chinese civilization for the whole

period of its developm ent. Finally, according to Ren Jiyu? the interest

in Oriental and, in particular, Chinese civilization quite naturally focused

on

the Chinese classical philosophy, being “the mirror of the Chinese

civilization.”

Chinese philosophy and Chinese civilization are tightly linked into

an organic whole.

As

a part of the spiritual cultu re of any n atio n, philo-

sophy is a component of the whole spiritual activity undertaken by a

given human com mun ity. In most coun tries and regions philosophy serves

as an ideological, theoretical, or methodological basis of spiritual civiliza-

tion . In China, from the very star t of class division

of

the society and

appearance of civilization as a comprehensive spiritual experience of the

Journal of

Chinese

Philosophy

23

(19 )

21-30

Copyright @

1996

b y

Dialogue

Publishing Company, Hondulu, Hawaii, U S A .

Translated from Russian by Tamara Karganova.


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CHINESE PHILOSOPHY AND CHINESE CIYILIZATlON

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yourself.’4 Taoists expressed the Same idea, but their interpr etations

were different: T h e Taoist principle of natu rality, being broader and

more abstract, essentially seeks the same objective of providing

consistency between individuals and their positions

in

the macrocosmos.

Similar ideas about the determining and orienting role of Heaven as

the supreme model of justice, universal love and benefit for everybody

were developed by Mo Die i s ten principles were assigned to make

possible one’s consistency with t he Will of th e Heaven tian

zhi

,ultimate-

ly prescribed in the principle of ‘’universal love and mutual benefit.”’

The Legalists expressed the Same demands and norms in the more

strict form of a law th at was com pulso ry for everyone. When it was

followed, it was supposed t o provide fo r the stren gth and prosperity of the

state and strengthen the power of . the emperor.6 Such an approach pro-

ceeded from the same demand

for

cons istenc y, but the Legalists identified

consistency as determined by evil human nature

which

had to be

repressed, contained, and eradicated by the society, the state and the ruler

who embodied the suprem e will of th e state.’ The variety of approaches

to the definition

of

human nature quite logically produced a variety of

philosophical and political ideas, therefore giving another evidence

of

the

omnipresent and universal role of philosophy in the development of

Chinese civilization.

f

Wise men

of

ancie nt Greece claimed that philosophy was the science

of sciences. In medieval Eu rop e and the Middle East, philosophy served

theology. What makes Chinese philosophy so special is tha t for almost five

millennia

of

Chinese civilization, Chinese philosophy has been motivating

the entire Chinese society and nation to admire and follow philosophy as

the supreme wisdom

-

the wisdom that has been setting the norms

of

justice, correctness and consistency between the system

of

values and the

individual (irrespective of the latter’s position in the social hie rarc hy).

The total and universal dem ands of such wisdom are com pulso ry and can

be judged orily by Heaven, while any inconsistency with these demands

must be somehow eliminated and consistency resto red . This has been

manifest

in

the consistent rationalism and revolutionary resoluteness of


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23 M I K H A I L

L.

TITARENKO

Chinese ph ilosophy: if the emperor’s actio ns are inconsistent with the

Will of Heaven, the emperor must be removed

so

that the des t iny

of

the

count ry

(mi )

can be changed cgeh . Hence, the Chinese analogue of

the European notion of “revolution” (ge mind) .

So, the f i rst and major difference between phi losophies of other

civilizations an d t he Chinese philosophical c ulture is seen in the polit ical,

social and moral engagement of th e lat ter . Serving th e ruling policy and

seeking to provide ideological support

for

the edif icat ion of state power

and selfc onso lidati on of th e state, Chinese philoso phy has generally

been tightly interconnected with policy. In th is manner, the Chinese

state has acquired i ts own idiocrat ic character which has been sustained for

millennia even up t o the present da y.

This

fact , in t ur n, has pred eterm ined other special features of

Chinese philosophy, that is, i ts adherence to canons and norm-set t ing

compositions th at have been representing t he con ten ts of Chinese wisdom

u p

to

the ear ly 20 th cen tury . I t the teaching

on

canons Ging

xud

that

has constituted the cultural core of Chinese civilization.

This principal feature of Chinese phi losophy has precondit ioned

another of i ts special propert ies, i .e . , the dichotomic structure,

or

i ts

vertical an d horizontal con struc tion. Vettically, Chinese philosop hy re-

presents the complex of the supreme norms of wis dom as well as political

and spiritual mor ality. This vertical dimension sets up th e strict order and

hierarchy

of

values and virtues where Heaven is the supreme model,

To

follow Heaven and to be in unity with Heaven is the real way of moral

existence in an individual’s l ife. Th e horizont al structure o f Chinese philo-

sophy , embodied in all spheres of material an d n on m at er ia l l ife of Chinese

society, is expre ssed in the remarkable noti on o f Diversity in Unit y. How-

ever, this diversity is based on a methodologic al an d ratio nal un ity, i .e.,

on the need for consistency with the Will of Heaven, appropriate ri tuals,

natural ity , mind, and t radi t ion.

The major elements

of

Chinese philosophy cited above are precon-

ditioned mainly by the very character

of

Chinese civilization. As a while

it has been a mainlan d an d agricultural typ e of civilization where philo-


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CHINESE PHILOSOPHY AND CHINESE CIVILIZATION

25

sop hy, as well as other spheres of no nm ate rial activities, was put to serve

th e landcultivating culture in a comparatively closed con tinen tal space.’

Therefo re, Chinese philosophy has spiritually reflec ted the agrarian policy

and the emperor’s pow er, which have left stron g marks o n the structure as

well as the very co ntents of Chinese philosophy and pred eterm ined m any

of its most important features that reveal its direct connection with econo-

mic forms of life in China. An ample case in point

is

seen in th e notions

of time and space, which were quite closed and related on ly

to

the agrarian

life style. Unlike philosophical effo rts in a ncie nt Greece and Rom e, no

indepen dent stud y of the categories o f time a nd space has ever been deve-

loped in China.’

In

Chinese philosophy, these categories are tied up with

the lunar calendar

into

the single whole including the four seasons and

fou r cardinal poin ts, cente red arou nd the agrarian individual. Philosophi-

cally, this was represented in th e teaching o n the un ity betw een Heaven

and the individual. Therefore, there are m an y reasons t o argue that

Chinese philosophy touches on the view of the world of the agrarian ind i-

vidual, and major problems of ontology and gnoseology are solved in

Chinese philosophy throu gh the prism o f the agrarian individual’s intere sts

and behavior. In particular, this was manifested in th e concept of the

interconnection and interaction of time and space with the “five primary

elements” w u x ingk) , the light an d dark elements, an d the teaching on

ether

qi

Ano ther no tew orth y point is tha t Han dyn asty Confucianism

(2 nd centu ry BC to

AD

2nd century) asserted the calendar approach as

the criteria to govern the country and determine policy, culture and

thinking.

The concrete character of time and space in human dimensions has

predetermined the specific pattern of natural sciences in ancient China,

and produc ed an original method of natu ral stud ies. Th e essence of these

studies can be drawn u p in the following five attit ud es:

Concentration of attention on the integral, universal and com-

prehensive, rather th an o n individual facto rs

2. Concentration of attention o n the condition, process and

evolution of time and qi as well as movement of objects, rather than on

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M I K H A I L L TITARENKO

static objects;

3 .

Attention

to

th e potentials (pote ntial usefulness) and properties

rather than specific structure and composition of an o bje ct. Things were

viewed as being caught up in the continu ous evolution from one cond ition

into th e o the r, hardly suggesting the stability of thing s,

Attention to the usefulness of a thing as a whole and its ability

t o reciprocate as a w ho le, rather tha n focusing on the individual properties

of a thing ; hen ce, th e emphasis on the importance of additional informa-

tion and the possibility of using a thing in the conditions of equilibrium

and tranquility;

Lack of attention

on

various models, forms and vectors of the

motion of things through numerical me asure me nt, calculations, indu ction

of knowledge and information. Attention to the trends of movement and

the development of things, mainly by analogy .

Another typical feature of Chinese philosophy is its recognition

of

the existence of the surrounding world, symbolically and comprehensive-

ly named as Heaven, Earth, and the whole mass of things (wan wum)

All of these exist by following a certain w ay ( f a o n ) nd are con sistent with

a

certain order

deo;

ip). So such notions of European philosophy as

”being” and “non-being” have acquired in Chinese philosophy the dif-

ferent nuances of “existence“ ( you q) and “lack of existence” (wu f).

The refore , it is not incidental that th e question o f wheth er the outside

world exists and w hethe r it is the source of hu ma n kno wled ge usually has

not been

a

subject of discussion or philosophical speculations in Chinese

cultur e.” There the subject of speculation has been diffe ren t. How are

we to interpret the ways of th is world’s deve lopm ent? What are the

dialectics

of

the world s existence and none xis tence? Are those categories

eternal?

The initial norm-setting character

of

Chinese wisdom has precon-

ditioned another special feature. In China the dialectics of the ap pearance

and development of a thing, its transitions into other things, and their

death have acquired a symbolically numerological expressio n. These are

presented in the form of the problem of correlating m an y num bers that

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CHINESE PHILOSOPHY A N D CHINESE CIVILIZATION 27

were formalized first in the form of trigrams, and then in to the hexagrams

of the

Book

of

Changes (Yijing)'.

The notion of circulation in the surroundin world, to o, has acquired

a special character

in

China. In the perc eption of Chinese wise men every-

thing in th e world is interconnected, interdependent and co-subordinated.

The five primary elements and the tw o opposites of yin' and p n g U give

birth to one another and overcome on e another, while selfdev elopm ent of

the material, substantial and spiritual element of

q i

is evident. As Heaven

represents the supreme comprehensive un ity o f the wo rld, the Gre at

Lim it (Tuiji') represents the supreme lim it of development. Once that

limit is reached, a new cycle of development of the entire world of things

sta rts again.

The organic

link

between Chinese philosophy and the entire Chinese

civilization was amply manifested in the special ways and culture of

thinking that, in at least some sense, have been preconditioned by the

character script. Chinese characters intro duc e the com pon ent

of

addition-

al sign information and identify the essential association of the given

notion or term.

In

European languages the word

is

a form al sign of some

essence that is identified only by a set trad ition of the silent public agree-

ment within some social, ethic

or

cultural community, whde in the

Chinese language, apart from s uch condition al traditionalism, every simple

or

complex term/sign bears some certain image information that deci-

phers this sign. Characters, initially depicting and symbolizing some

objects

or

relations,

as

well as the modern word-notions including the

translated or aboriginal abstract categories, decipher t o an equal exten t the

meaning of any n otion at the image character level.

Th e Chinese script and the 'Chinese mode of think ing are closely

connected with a certain methodology of a specifically Chinese analysis

of things and phenomena which is quite different form the European

analysis. Lu XunW and Mao Zedong' qualified this m od e of thinking as

the Chinese drugstore me thod . The specifics of

this

Chinese mentality

have predetermined as well the principle app roac h of Chinese cultu re to

foreign c ulture . The latter can be perceived by Chinese people and inco r-


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CHINESE PHILOSOPHY

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CHINESE CIVILIZATION

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1 .

2 .

3 .

4.

5

6 .

7 .

a .

9 .

10.

11.

12.

13.

NOTES

Zhang Dianiany.

Zhongguo wenhua yu Zhongguo zhexu8 Chinese

Cultureand Chinese Philosophy Beijing, 1986, pp. 1 1 1 .

Titarenko, M.L. Afterword to the Istoriya kitaiskoifilosofii.

[Hisroly

of Chinese Philosophy].

Moscow, 1989, pp. 526-530,

Titarenko M.L., Bourov. V.G . Filosofiya drevnego Kitaya. Vstoup-

leniye k antologii “Drevnyaya kitaiskaya fdosofiya”. [Philosophy

of

Ancient China, Preface to

Ancient Chinese Philosophy].

Lun

Yun. Zhuzi quan

jiab Beijing, 19 56, Vol. 1, Chapter 12 ,

‘ T a n ~ u a n ’ ’ ; ~

I .

Op

it ., ‘Wei Lingong”pd 23.

Titarenko, M.L. Dreunekitaiskiifilosof Mo Di, yego shkoh i ucheni-

ye. [Ancient Chinese Philosopher

Mo

Di, His

chool

and Teaching]

Moscow, 1985.

Perelomov, L.S

Confutsiansrvo i legism

v

politicheskoi istorii

Kitaya. [Conficianism and Legalism in China’s Political Hisro~y]

Moscow, 198 1.

Feoktistov, V.F.

Filosofskiye i obshchesrvennopoliticheskiye

vzglyady Sun-zi. [Philosophical and Socio-Political vies of Sun zi]

Moscow, 1976.

Metodologicheskiye problemy izucheniya istorii filosofii zarubezh

nogo Vostoka [Methodology Problems in the Study of the History

of

the Forem Oriental Philosophy].

Moscow, 1987, pp. 68-70:

Loukyanov, VE.

Duo “Knigi peremen”.

[Tao

o f

the Book of

Changes]. Moscow, 1993.

For reference, see Endnote 8.

Loukyanov, A.E ,Op. cit.

Malyavin,V.V.Zhuangci. Moscow, 1988, p 823.

Cheng Zhungyingae, ‘How the Chinese Philosophy Is To Recon-

structed.” in

Chinese Culture and Chinese Philosophy.

Beijing,

MOSCOW 1972 , Vol. 1 , pp.

5-77.

1986, pp. 549-550.


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MIKHAIL L. TITARENKO

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