From "Rites, Reason" to "Rites, Public Heart": Xu Heng's Reconstruction of Confucian Rites Ontology

Jie Liu(Northwest Normal University)

Abstract

Xu Heng, as an important representative of Yuan dynasty science, creatively transformed the ontology of Confucian etiquette from the abstract "Divine Principle" to the concrete "Public Heart" on the basis of the inheritance of "Ritual is also Reason" from Cheng Zhu's science. The public mind". This paper analyzes Xu Heng's critical inheritance of Zhu Xi's theory of "reason", the practical transformation of the core of Confucianism and Mencius' etiquette, and the political practice of his ontology of "public mind", revealing how Xu Heng, through the "heart with all the reason", "seeks in return for the truth", "seeks in return for the truth", "seeks in return for the truth", and "seeks in return for the truth". It reveals how Xu Heng, through propositions such as "the heart has many reasons" and "seeking the heart", pushed Confucian ritualism from philosophical discourse to political governance, and ultimately constructed a system of rituals adapted to the Yuan dynasty's multi-ethnic regime.

Keywords

Xu Heng, Confucianism, Ritualism, Ontology

References

(Song) Zhu Xi, “Essentials of the Analects and Mencius,” Essentials of the Analects, Volume 6, Part II, Siku Quanshu Edition.

(Song) Zhu Xi, Compiler of “The Collected Works of Hui'an,” Volume 60, Siku Quanshu Edition.

(Yuan) Xu Qian, “Readings on the Four Books,” Readings on Mencius, Volume 1, “Gongsun Chou I,” Four-Part Collection, Continuation Edition, Jingyuan Edition.

(Yuan) Xu Heng, Lu Zhai Yishu, Siku Quanshu Edition.

(Yuan) Wang Chongyun, Four Books of Confucian Classics: Resolving Doubts and Achieving Understanding, Volume 6, Siku Quanshu Edition.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.12345/jetm.v9i3.30908