『논어』의 ‘습(習)’자 해석 일고(一考)

Abstract

‘Learning with a constant perseverance and application[學而時習]’ is the topic of 『The Analects of Confucius』 and one of the core ideas of Confucianism. In 『The Analects of Confucius』, the letter ‘Xue(學, learning)’ appears 65 times. Therefore, the interpretations and opinions of scholars based on abundant data appear diversely. On the other hand, the letter ‘Xi(習, practicing)’ appears only three times, but descriptive content about it is found throughout 『The Analects of Confucius』. In this paper, I would like to find out the implications of ‘Xi(習)’ that Confucius intended to say by examining the descriptive content about ‘Xi(習)’ in 『The Analects of Confucius』. ‘Xi(習)’ means the act of repeatedly flapping its wings in order for a young bird to fly. It refers to the process of self-improvement[習] after[而] learning[學] the wing strokes of a mother bird, but fundamentally, it means that a young bird must make practical efforts on its own in order to fly. Breaking away from the fixed path on the earth and jumping towards the path boundlessly broadened out in the sky implies a transition from imitation to creation. This can be expected to be effective when you understand and practice the method and purpose of ‘Xi(習)’. Yiyupurun(一雨普潤), the rain wets everything evenly. There is no discrimination. However, even if plants and trees get wet in the same rain, the result of growth is different. The same goes for people and animals. It means that the results may differ depending on the situation in which each person is faced and the attitude they are dealing with. In this paper, I indicated ‘WenSi(問思, inquiring with earnestness and reflecting with self-application)’ and ‘FenFei(憤悱, being eager to get knowledge and anxious to explain oneself)' as the means of practicing ‘Xi(習)’ and ‘ZhiXin(知新, acquiring new)’ and ‘YueLi(約禮, keeping oneself under the restraint of the rule of propriety)’ as the purpose of practicing ‘Xi(習)’, and then I investigated the relation.