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Abstract：This paper takes Zen Dian’s Aspiration（曾点之志）in Xianjin of The Analects（《论语·先进》）as research object，surveys this expression’s significance presented in Han-Tang Confucian Classic Hermeneutics System.Compared with the emphasis toward individual spirit about Song Dynasty Confucians，Han-Tang Confucians’ explanations pointed to political orientation，and indicated the quality of political order.
Keyword：Zen Dian’s Aspiration，Confucian Classic Hermeneutics，Politics
The issue，Zeng Dian Qixiang（曾点气象），which was raised by Song Confucians，was an important topic that has received sustaining discussion during the whole course of the ideological development from Northern Song Dynasty to Qing Dynasty.The origin and development of this question is not a simple accident.Instead，it reveals a turning point of academic thoughts and represents the most essential feature of Neo-Confucianism in Song Dynasty.The fundamental change of Song Confucianism lies in its turning internalized，its emphasizing the priority of the individuals’ spirit and mind that are believed to be the starting point and very basis of political practice.
The birth of Neo-Confucianism in the Song Dynasty is not only a part of the continuous development of Confucianism itself，but also represents a break from the Han-Tang Confucianism，which offers different explanations of Zeng Dian’s aspiration（曾點之志）and for the reason why Confucius said “I am with Zeng Dian”（吾与点也）.For instance，is there any else sense besides turning internalized in this transformation？ What is the essential difference between Han-Tang and Song-Ming Confucianism？ Hence we are strongly necessary to turn back to survey the explanations of Han-Tang Confucians，so as to illustrate the fundamental differences between two stages of Confucianism.
The expression，Zeng Dian’s aspiration，is derived from the last chapter of BookⅪ Xianjin of The Analects（《论语·先进》）：
Once when Zilu，Zeng Xi，Ran Qiu and Gongxi Hua were seated in attendance upon the Master，he said，“You consider me as a somewhat older man than yourselves.Forget for a moment that I am so.At present you are out of office and feel that your merits are not recognized.Now supposing someone were to recognize your merits，what employment would you choose？” Zilu promptly and confidently replied，“Give me a country of a thousand war-chariots，hemmed in by powerful enemies，or even invaded by hostile armies，with drought and famine to boot；in the space of three years I could endow the people with courage and teach them in what direction right conduct lies.” Our Master smiled at him.“What about you，Qiu？” he said.Qiu replied saying，“Give me a domain of sixty to seventy or say fifty to sixty（leagues），and in the space of three years I could bring it about that the common people should lack for nothing.But as to rites and music，I should have to leave them to a real gentleman.”
“What about you，Chi？”
（Gongxi Hua）Answered saying，“I do not say I could do this；but I should like at any rate to be trained for it.In ceremonies at the Ancestral Temple or at a conference or general gathering of the feudal princes I should like，clad in the Straight Gown and Emblematic Cap，to play the part of junior assistant.”
“Dian，what about you？”
The notes of the zithern he was softly fingering died away；he put it down，rose and replied saying，“I fear my words will not be so well chosen as those of the other three.” The Master said，“What harm is there in that？ All that matters is that each should name his desire.”
Zeng Xi said，“At the end of spring，when the making of the Spring Clothes has been completed，to go with five or six newly-capped youths and six or seven uncapped boys，perform the lustration in the river Yi，take the air at the Rain Dance altars，and then go home singing.” The Master heaved a deep sigh and said，“I am with Dian.”
He Yan（何晏）cited Han Dynasty Confucian named Kong Anguo’s（孔安國）explanation，which reads as supposing you were appointed，what would you do to govern the country.This explanation means that the conversations are concerned about politics.The intention why The Master asked his students what would they do to govern the country is to know their ideal political orders.Under this circumstance，Zeng Dian’s aspiration is also related to politics.However，different from the specific measures and practical effects which Zilu，，Ran Qiu and Gongxi Hua proposed，it seems that Zeng Dian’s opinion is unrelated to the reality of political governance.Instead，he depicted a picture of a harmonious and joyful living scene.Therefore，since the rise of Wei-Jin metaphysics，scholar- bureaucrats tended to amplify the meaning of Zeng Dian’s aspiration，regarding it as a kind of life interest irrelevant to political achievement and even getting rid of politics.In contrast，Han Confucians’ illustration，which expounds the political implication，sticks more closely to the theme.Concerning the explanation of the sentence I am with Dian，He Yan cited Han Dynasty Confucian named Zhou Shenglie’s（周生烈）annotation saying that The Master commended Zeng Dian for his unique awareness of timing.
The explanation shows that the Master’s approval of Zeng Dian because he is able to be aware of Timing（時）.Within the system of Confucianism，the concept of Timing is of great significance，which is a metaphysical concept，representing the basic rules of historical patterns and life orders.Accordingly，the awareness of Timing implies understanding of rules，which undoubtedly is a valuable political quality，to obtain which requiring a pretty high intelligence and disposition.Thus，the difference between Zeng Dian and the other three students is their dispositions.However，is there any evidence，in Zeng Dian’s expression of his aspiration，to prove that Zeng Dian possessed the awareness of timing？ The annotation offered by Xing Bing（邢昺）says：
The Master followed the examples of Yao-Shun’s（尧舜）conducts and Wen-Wu’s（文武）theories.He could not fulfill his ambition because of the turbulent society.Zilu，Ran Qiu and Gongxi Hua did not fully comprehend the trend，aiming at political practice.Only Zeng Dian was conscious of timing，aiming at lustration of bodies and morality and pursuing delight.Hence the Master agreed with him.
In other words，Zeng Dian’s awareness of timing（知时）comes from his insight of the turbulent era，his sober understanding of collapse of political order and dangerous political reality.It is quite difficult，or even impossible to bring order out of chaos in this situation.Hence，the only way is to repose the ideal political order in words，pursuing delight（咏怀乐道）.Here，politics maintains its first priority，which made Zeng Dian’s personal choice against political reality.
The interpretation of Tang Dynasty Confucian named Li Ao（李翱）is quite similar：
Confucius agreed with Dian because of his appreciation of Wangdao（王道）.The other aimed at political affairs of dukes（诸侯）.Thus，Confucius didn’t accept.
Li also focused on the level of aspirations and expressed in a more intuitive way.The former scholars just pointed out Ledao（乐道），while Li further interpreted that it is Wangdao（王道）which delighted Zeng Dian.However，what is the relationship between the scene depicted by Zeng Dian and Wangdao？ Unfortunately，Li did not go further.But it is not difficult for us to find that the peaceful，joyful life depicted by Zen Dian can only be imagined in an ideal political vision rather than in a turbulent era.In other words，Wangdao politics，the ideal political orders，is the precondition for any possible individual good life.The former is giving-birth and the latter is given-birth，which is obviously a theory derived from Han-Tang cosmology. In conclusion，the Han-Tang interpretations of “I am with Dian”，whether as a praise for his awareness of timing or as an appreciation of his delighting in Wangdao，is based on the dimension of politics.It is the fundamental starting point of Confucian classic hermeneutics that politics is the basis of human life.Political orders and qualities are the primary objects of studies for Han Confucian.Some scholars are in opinion that Han-Tang Confucian classic hermeneutics is too stuck to the priority of politics，which leads to the ideologicalization of Confucianism，making it rigid，dogmatic and away from individual life experiences.Hence，Song Confucians tried to rectify this problem.In response to this，we can only say that Confucian classic hermeneutics，as a kind of political philosophy，cannot be confounded with the political practices in reality.It provides a direction，model and delimitation for practice.The faults of realistic politics result from the weaknesses of human nature rather than classic hermeneutics.In fact，Han-Tang Confucians clearly realized this issue and made a corresponding solution by distinguishing the varying levels of dispositions and emphasizing the political qualities of the governors.
REFERENCES
[1] The Analects，trans by Arthur Waley，Hunan People’s Publishing House and Foreign Languages House，1999.
[2] LUNYU HUIJIAO JISHI（《論语汇校集释》），compiled by Huang Huaixin（黄怀信），Shanghai：Shanghai Chinese Classics Publishing House，2008.
[3] Feng Dawen（冯达文），Different View of Zeng Dian Qixiang，published in Looking for the homeland of the heart，Beijing：Zhonghua Book Company，2015.
作者简介
仝广秀（1986—），男，山西大同人，中山大学哲学系硕士研究生，研究方向：古典诗学。
（作者单位：Sun Yat-Sen University）
Keyword：Zen Dian’s Aspiration，Confucian Classic Hermeneutics，Politics
The issue，Zeng Dian Qixiang（曾点气象），which was raised by Song Confucians，was an important topic that has received sustaining discussion during the whole course of the ideological development from Northern Song Dynasty to Qing Dynasty.The origin and development of this question is not a simple accident.Instead，it reveals a turning point of academic thoughts and represents the most essential feature of Neo-Confucianism in Song Dynasty.The fundamental change of Song Confucianism lies in its turning internalized，its emphasizing the priority of the individuals’ spirit and mind that are believed to be the starting point and very basis of political practice.
The birth of Neo-Confucianism in the Song Dynasty is not only a part of the continuous development of Confucianism itself，but also represents a break from the Han-Tang Confucianism，which offers different explanations of Zeng Dian’s aspiration（曾點之志）and for the reason why Confucius said “I am with Zeng Dian”（吾与点也）.For instance，is there any else sense besides turning internalized in this transformation？ What is the essential difference between Han-Tang and Song-Ming Confucianism？ Hence we are strongly necessary to turn back to survey the explanations of Han-Tang Confucians，so as to illustrate the fundamental differences between two stages of Confucianism.
The expression，Zeng Dian’s aspiration，is derived from the last chapter of BookⅪ Xianjin of The Analects（《论语·先进》）：
Once when Zilu，Zeng Xi，Ran Qiu and Gongxi Hua were seated in attendance upon the Master，he said，“You consider me as a somewhat older man than yourselves.Forget for a moment that I am so.At present you are out of office and feel that your merits are not recognized.Now supposing someone were to recognize your merits，what employment would you choose？” Zilu promptly and confidently replied，“Give me a country of a thousand war-chariots，hemmed in by powerful enemies，or even invaded by hostile armies，with drought and famine to boot；in the space of three years I could endow the people with courage and teach them in what direction right conduct lies.” Our Master smiled at him.“What about you，Qiu？” he said.Qiu replied saying，“Give me a domain of sixty to seventy or say fifty to sixty（leagues），and in the space of three years I could bring it about that the common people should lack for nothing.But as to rites and music，I should have to leave them to a real gentleman.”
“What about you，Chi？”
（Gongxi Hua）Answered saying，“I do not say I could do this；but I should like at any rate to be trained for it.In ceremonies at the Ancestral Temple or at a conference or general gathering of the feudal princes I should like，clad in the Straight Gown and Emblematic Cap，to play the part of junior assistant.”
“Dian，what about you？”
The notes of the zithern he was softly fingering died away；he put it down，rose and replied saying，“I fear my words will not be so well chosen as those of the other three.” The Master said，“What harm is there in that？ All that matters is that each should name his desire.”
Zeng Xi said，“At the end of spring，when the making of the Spring Clothes has been completed，to go with five or six newly-capped youths and six or seven uncapped boys，perform the lustration in the river Yi，take the air at the Rain Dance altars，and then go home singing.” The Master heaved a deep sigh and said，“I am with Dian.”
He Yan（何晏）cited Han Dynasty Confucian named Kong Anguo’s（孔安國）explanation，which reads as supposing you were appointed，what would you do to govern the country.This explanation means that the conversations are concerned about politics.The intention why The Master asked his students what would they do to govern the country is to know their ideal political orders.Under this circumstance，Zeng Dian’s aspiration is also related to politics.However，different from the specific measures and practical effects which Zilu，，Ran Qiu and Gongxi Hua proposed，it seems that Zeng Dian’s opinion is unrelated to the reality of political governance.Instead，he depicted a picture of a harmonious and joyful living scene.Therefore，since the rise of Wei-Jin metaphysics，scholar- bureaucrats tended to amplify the meaning of Zeng Dian’s aspiration，regarding it as a kind of life interest irrelevant to political achievement and even getting rid of politics.In contrast，Han Confucians’ illustration，which expounds the political implication，sticks more closely to the theme.Concerning the explanation of the sentence I am with Dian，He Yan cited Han Dynasty Confucian named Zhou Shenglie’s（周生烈）annotation saying that The Master commended Zeng Dian for his unique awareness of timing.
The explanation shows that the Master’s approval of Zeng Dian because he is able to be aware of Timing（時）.Within the system of Confucianism，the concept of Timing is of great significance，which is a metaphysical concept，representing the basic rules of historical patterns and life orders.Accordingly，the awareness of Timing implies understanding of rules，which undoubtedly is a valuable political quality，to obtain which requiring a pretty high intelligence and disposition.Thus，the difference between Zeng Dian and the other three students is their dispositions.However，is there any evidence，in Zeng Dian’s expression of his aspiration，to prove that Zeng Dian possessed the awareness of timing？ The annotation offered by Xing Bing（邢昺）says：
The Master followed the examples of Yao-Shun’s（尧舜）conducts and Wen-Wu’s（文武）theories.He could not fulfill his ambition because of the turbulent society.Zilu，Ran Qiu and Gongxi Hua did not fully comprehend the trend，aiming at political practice.Only Zeng Dian was conscious of timing，aiming at lustration of bodies and morality and pursuing delight.Hence the Master agreed with him.
In other words，Zeng Dian’s awareness of timing（知时）comes from his insight of the turbulent era，his sober understanding of collapse of political order and dangerous political reality.It is quite difficult，or even impossible to bring order out of chaos in this situation.Hence，the only way is to repose the ideal political order in words，pursuing delight（咏怀乐道）.Here，politics maintains its first priority，which made Zeng Dian’s personal choice against political reality.
The interpretation of Tang Dynasty Confucian named Li Ao（李翱）is quite similar：
Confucius agreed with Dian because of his appreciation of Wangdao（王道）.The other aimed at political affairs of dukes（诸侯）.Thus，Confucius didn’t accept.
Li also focused on the level of aspirations and expressed in a more intuitive way.The former scholars just pointed out Ledao（乐道），while Li further interpreted that it is Wangdao（王道）which delighted Zeng Dian.However，what is the relationship between the scene depicted by Zeng Dian and Wangdao？ Unfortunately，Li did not go further.But it is not difficult for us to find that the peaceful，joyful life depicted by Zen Dian can only be imagined in an ideal political vision rather than in a turbulent era.In other words，Wangdao politics，the ideal political orders，is the precondition for any possible individual good life.The former is giving-birth and the latter is given-birth，which is obviously a theory derived from Han-Tang cosmology. In conclusion，the Han-Tang interpretations of “I am with Dian”，whether as a praise for his awareness of timing or as an appreciation of his delighting in Wangdao，is based on the dimension of politics.It is the fundamental starting point of Confucian classic hermeneutics that politics is the basis of human life.Political orders and qualities are the primary objects of studies for Han Confucian.Some scholars are in opinion that Han-Tang Confucian classic hermeneutics is too stuck to the priority of politics，which leads to the ideologicalization of Confucianism，making it rigid，dogmatic and away from individual life experiences.Hence，Song Confucians tried to rectify this problem.In response to this，we can only say that Confucian classic hermeneutics，as a kind of political philosophy，cannot be confounded with the political practices in reality.It provides a direction，model and delimitation for practice.The faults of realistic politics result from the weaknesses of human nature rather than classic hermeneutics.In fact，Han-Tang Confucians clearly realized this issue and made a corresponding solution by distinguishing the varying levels of dispositions and emphasizing the political qualities of the governors.
REFERENCES
[1] The Analects，trans by Arthur Waley，Hunan People’s Publishing House and Foreign Languages House，1999.
[2] LUNYU HUIJIAO JISHI（《論语汇校集释》），compiled by Huang Huaixin（黄怀信），Shanghai：Shanghai Chinese Classics Publishing House，2008.
[3] Feng Dawen（冯达文），Different View of Zeng Dian Qixiang，published in Looking for the homeland of the heart，Beijing：Zhonghua Book Company，2015.
作者简介
仝广秀（1986—），男，山西大同人，中山大学哲学系硕士研究生，研究方向：古典诗学。
（作者单位：Sun Yat-Sen University）