장재(張載)와 정이(程頤)의 심성론(心性論) 비교 고찰

Abstract

Zhāng Zài(張載, 1020-1077) and Chéng Yí(程頤, 1033-1107) were major philosophers of the early Neo-Confucianism, who had profound influences on the development of Neo-Confucian thought in the future generations. This is because the two concepts representing Neo-Confucian thought, ‘Li(理)’ and ‘Qi(氣)’ began to be treated importantly by Zhāng Zài and Chéng Yí. The influences of Zhāng Zài and Chéng Yí on Neo-Confucianism in the future generations can be easily assumed in that the main argument of Neo-Confucianism is concerned with the understanding of the concepts of ‘Li’ and ‘Qi.’ In terms of historical situations, both Zhāng Zài and Chéng Yí criticized the theory of self-cultivation of Buddhism and the thought of Laotzu based on skepticism and sought the possibility of firm awareness as a solution to overcome this. On this same historical background, Zhāng Zài developed a thought that attaches primary importance to ‘Qi’ while Chéng Yí developed a thought that attaches primary importance to ‘Li.’ This difference in ontology had an influence on the theory of Xin-Xing. ‘Qi’ philosophy and ‘Li’ philosophy have a fundamental difference in the premise. Zhāng Zài shows a model of monistic thought that explains the world and human being with a single being of ‘Qi’ while Chéng Yí limits ‘Qi’ only to the material dimension of phenomena and reveals a dualistic thought that ‘Li’ exists separately as the basis of the existence and movement of the world and human being. This difference appears in the entire domain of Confucian thought, such as the theory of Xin-Xing that reveals the understanding of the human being and the theory of self-cultivation that suggests the methodology of moral practice as well as metaphysical ontology. Therefore, this study would conduct a comparative discussion of the theory of Xin-Xing of Zhāng Zài(張載), the representative scholar of ‘Qi’ philosophy and Chéng Yí(程頤), the representative scholar of ‘Li’ philosophy, concerning how this difference in the premise between ‘Qi’ philosophy and ‘Li’ philosophy appears in the theory of Xin-Xing.