서계 박세당 사상의 기본입장

Abstract

This paper is a consideration for the basic position of Park Se Dang’s thought expressed in his Record of Meditations (《思辨錄》). The special feature of his thinking can be obviously seen in his critiques of Zhu Xi’s arguments. In his conception of investigation of things and extension knowledge, the so-called ‘investigation’ (格) is interpreted as ‘principles’ (法則) and ‘rectification’ (正). That means a different viewpoint from Zhu Xi who understands ‘investigation’ as ‘arrival’ (至) and ‘things’ (物) as ‘affairs’ (事). Especially he criticized the conception of ‘sudden enlightenment’ (豁然貫通). That is contrary to Zhu Xi’s explanation about ‘investigation of things’ according to which ‘if I try hard in a long time, some day suddenly I can understand comprehensively all things’ outside and inside, fineness and roughness, and the whole great function of my mind has nothing obscure’. He thinks that it is unreasonable to propose it (the sudden enlightenment) as the purpose of the study to who start learning. He also denies the scope of study set by Zhu Xi. In Park Se Dang’s viewpoint, the rectification of the mind is the most essential, therefore he refuses Zhu Xi’s opinion on the study in that the scope of the study set by Zhu Xi is excessively metaphysical and detailed. He criticizes the way that Zhu Xi explains the difference between human nature and the nature of things as the difference between inclination and entirety (偏全). He thinks that the natures of man and animals are different themselves, but not that they are the same at the beginning and then distinguished into two ways – complete and incomplete. He also disagrees with Zhu Xi’s idea of mind-cultivation when the mind does not arise (未發) as an education methodology. Furthermore, He criticizes 'Preserving Heaven's Principle and Eradicate Humans' Greed' (存天理滅人欲) for as a wrong method.