氣質之性과 實事의 권리 회복 - 명말청초 사상가 顔元을 중심으로 -

Abstract

Yan Yuan(顔元, 1635-1704) was a thinker of between the late Ming and early Qing Dynasty. An Yuan was a founder of the An Li school, a scholar who held an anti-Zhengzhu school stance and eschewed the frivolity and rancorous arguments of the Zhengzhou school. An Yuan recognized not only Zhuxism but also Yangmingism as the source of Ming dynasty’s corruption. An Yuan recognized the basic concepts of Song Ming in just two characters. One is Jing(靜) and the other is Xu(虛). He saw the root of the country’s loss in the long history of scholarship’s search for static discipline and the invisible, noble entity of Li or Tao. Of course, An Yuan did not dismiss the concept of Li or Tao, but he believed that scholars should strengthen the dynamics and practicality of knowing, and advocate for human Qi, or the Psycho-Physical Nature(the Temperamental Nature, 氣質之性), to contribute to the practical lives of the people. This is because he realized from vivid experience that no matter how much he worshiped the moral reality of Li, he could not control the people’s daily lives and could not save them. I believe that the future of Confucianism lies in the way of giving concrete meaning to the contemporary significance of the discipline. The strict moralism of Confucianism has been the source of the spiritual history of East Asian societies, but the practice of moralism requires a process that is long overdue. Moreover, in this age of capitalism and materialism, it is difficult to practice the moralism of studying Confucianism unless one is a special kind of sage. This is where we meet Yan Yuan. Yan Yuan was deeply troubled by the times in which he lived. The depth of Yan Yuan’s thought, which was conceived in a time of hardship, is inherent in Yanyuanji(顔元集). As I read this book, I was able to see the weight of a thinker’s philosophical concerns. His concerns are quite different from conventional thought. It is similar to the worldview of Chen Liang(陳亮, 1143-1194) of the Yongkang School, who advocated realism in the Song Dynasty, but it is more progressive in that it advocates the practical desires of the lower classes. I would like to summarize Yan Yuan’s ideas. This work is motivated by the idea that the perspective of Zhengzhu school, which advocated strict moderation of emotions and desires, may not be well-suited to dealing with the contemporary problem of desire. In contrast, another focus from the scholastic tradition, which is well-suited to the contemporary trend of making the possession of capital and property a virtue, can be offered alongside Yan Yuan’s concerns.