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Abstract In the contemporary process of reconfiguring the ideological landscape of Chinese philosophy, exploring the research space of Neo-Confucianism discourse proves to be a highly beneficial endeavor. Previous investigations into Neo-Confucianism discourse have predominantly focused on abstract discourse systems such as concepts and categories, often neglecting metaphors grounded in everyday life experiences. Consequently, the profound spiritual and practical implications of Chinese philosophy remain inadequately unearthed. Taking the metaphor “kite-flying and fish-jumping (Yuanfei Yuyue)” as an illustrative example, originally an employment of metaphorical rhetoric in The Book of Songs praising King Wen’s ancestral sacrifices and subsequent blessings, it underwent a creative reinterpretation by Zisi through “taking the meaning out of the context”, extending its scope to describe the virtues of the sage as an exemplar of rites and music. Gradually distancing itself from the “interpreting a text”, this discourse transitioned into the realm of “using a text”, significantly enriching and expanding its conceptual implications. Motivated by distinct considerations related to maintaining political and educational order or inventing the nature of the mind-heart, the Confucian scholars of the Han Dynasty and Neo-Confucian scholars of the Song Dynasty undertook differentiated conceptual restructuring of the metaphor “kite-flying and fish-jumping”. This resulted in the transformation of the metaphor into two divergent conceptual structures: the orderly “oriental metaphor” and “ontological metaphor”.
In comparison, figures such as the Cheng brothers and Zhu Xi employed an integrated approach that harmonized poetry and thought, emotion and reason. They systematically expounded the metaphorical implications of “kite-flying and fish-jumping” in terms of ontology, effort, spiritual realm, and value. In doing so, they fashioned it into a spiritual symbol of the Confucian life imbued with poetic aesthetic qualities. This transformation not only highlighted the Confucian life sentiment of “forming one body with all things”, but also guided later scholars on the practical path of “the sage that can be reached by learning”, leaving a profound influence on the history of thought. Despite interpretive differences in the understanding of “kite-flying and fish-jumping” between the scholars of the Han and the Song Dynasties, they fundamentally adhered to the metaphorical generation mechanism of cross-domain mapping. In the process of migration from the source domain (kite and fish) to the target domain (rites and music or principles of heaven), Confucian scholars of the Han and the Song Dynasties undertook the construction of political indoctrination or the morality of the heart. Through continuous reinterpretations by thinkers throughout the ages, “kite-flying and fish-jumping” eventually evolved into a concrete and palpable “poetic metaphor”, vividly showcasing the poetic philosophical dimension of harmoniously integrating truth and beauty within Chinese philosophy.
Over an extended period, under the predominant influence of Western logical thinking that emphasizes causal relationships, Chinese culture has often been perceived as characterized by associative thinking centered on empathy and analogy. The mode of apprehending objects by proximity and discerning reality through resemblance has been exemplified as a basic method of understanding the world by the ancient Chinese. However, this is not a vague pre-modern or anti-scientific primitive thought process. Instead, it possesses distinctive grammatical generation mechanisms and social practice implications. Drawing on contemporary theories of metaphor, an exploration of the poetic wisdom embedded in classical texts may offer a more insightful revelation of the spiritual tradition in Chinese philosophy that embeds the Tao in artifacts and articulates principles through concrete matters. This endeavor could contribute to the construction of a modern Chinese civilization on the basis of returning to the roots while forging new paths, and facilitating mutual learning between Eastern and Western traditions.
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Published: 30 January 2024
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