A Short History of Chinese Philosophy Read Online Free PDF Page A

those of the farmer. In addition their education gave them the power to express what an actual farmer felt but was incapable of expressing himself. This expression took the form of Chinese philosophy, literature, and art.
    Value of Agriculture
    In the Lil -shih Ch ' un -ch' iu, a compendium of various schools of philosophy written in the third century B.C., there is a chapter titled "The Value of Agriculture." Tn this chapter a contrast is made between the mode of life of people who are engaged in the root occupation—the fanners, and that of those who are engaged in the "branch" occupation—the merchants. The farmers are primitive and simple and therefore always ready to accepi commands. They are childlike and innocent and therefore unselfish. Their material properties are complex and difficult to move, and therefove they do not abandon their country when it is in danger. Merchants, on the other hand, are corrupt and therefore not obedient. They are treacherous and therefore selfish. They have simple properties which are easy to transport, and therefore they usually abandon their country when it is in danger. Hence this chapter asserts that not only is agriculture economically more important than commerce, but the mode of life of the fanners is also superior to that of the merchants. Herein lies the value of agriculture. (XXVI, 3-) The author of this chapter found that the mode of life of people is conditioned by their economic background, and his evaluation of agriculture again shows that he was himself conditioned by the economic background of his time.
    In this observation of the Lil-shih Ch' un-ch'iu, we find the root and source of the two main trends of Chinese thought, Taoism and Confucianism. They are poles apart from one another, yet they are also the two poles of one and the same axis. They both express, in one way or another, the aspirations and inspirations of the farmer.
    Reversal, Is the Movement of Too
    Before considering the difference between these two schools, let us first take up a theory which both of them maintained. This is that both in the
     
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    THE BACKGROUND OF HINESE PHILOSOPHY
     
    sphere of nature and in that of man, when the development of anything brings it to one
    extreme, a reversal to the other extreme takes place; that is, to borrow an expression from Hegel, everything involves its own negation. This is one of the main theses of Lao Tzu' s philosophy and also that of the Book of Changes as interpreted by ihe Confucianists. It was no doubt inspired by the movements of the sun and moon and the succession of the four seasons, to which farmers must pay particular heed in order to carry on their own work. In the Appendices of the Book of Changes, it is said: When the cold goes, the warmth comes, and when the warmth comes, the cold goes. (Appendix III.) And again: "When the sun has reached its meridian, it declines, and when the moon has become full, it wanes." (Appendix I.) Such movements are referred to in the Appendices as "returning. Thus Appendix I says: In returning we see the mind of Heaven and Earth. Similarly in the Lao-tzu we find the words: Reversal is the movement of the Too." (Ch. 40.)
    This theory has had a great effect upon the Chinese people and has contributed much to their success in overcoming the many difficulties which they have encountered in their long history. Convinced of this theory, they remain cautious even in time of prosperity, and hopeful even in time of extreme danger. In the late war, the concept provided the Chinese people with a sort of psychological weapon, so that even in its darkest period, most people lived on the hope which was expressed in the phrase: "The dawn will soon come." It was this "will to believe" that helped the Chinese people to go through the war.
    This theory has also provided the principal argument for the doctrine of the golden mean, favored by Confucianist and Taoist alike. "Never too much has been the maxim of both. For according to