大學 / 中庸: The Great Learning / The Doctrine of the Mean

by Anonymous, He Zuokang, Zengzi

Bilingual (Chinese / English) edition

Genres: Philosophy, Classics, China, Nonfiction, Chinese Literature, Ancient, Asia

134 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 451

About the author

Books can be attributed to "Anonymous" for several reasons:

* They are officially published under that name
* They are traditional stories not attributed to a specific author
* They are religious texts not generally attributed to a specific author

Books whose authorship is merely uncertain should be attributed to Unknown.

See also: Anonymous

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Important work of classical Chinese philosophy translated for English speaking readers. It never ceases to amaze me that we have great works from the past that are translated and just waiting for us - just waiting; but so few of us find the time for them - yet many 'influencer' can reach millions of people overnight! Foundational work of philosophy.

[7jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5, but only because of the first book.

This book is the last two of the '4 greats' in Confucian literature (I have read the Analects, but decided to skip Mencius). The date and the authors of the books are uncertain, only fitting in a loose frame, time-wise, of 300-100 BC. The books themselves are quite slim (especially Ta Hsueh), so half of the books is just the two introductions, chronology (of dynasties), introduction to each (with explanations of title-choosing) with notes coming after (translation explanation and sources for books' quotes), plus three appendixes: basic concepts, used of proof-texts (flawed), and textural history of the books.

The two books were originally two sections of an anthology (which had total of 49 texts). The two gained more importance from Han dynasty onwards, and are now among the four important Confucian texts, as I've said above. Ta Hsueh is slimmer and lighter (and my favorite of the two), Chugn Yung is deep. Both are about moral cultivation for the ruling class, and prepared youths for examinations. There seems to be some non-Confucian influence on some sentences of some other beliefs (like Tao), but that's probably a coincidence. The texts are more inward-looking than the earlier two Confucian texts, but still do turn outwards enough also. Some parts may be misunderstood, but it's quite worth it to stick to the end (even if you want to skip everything else but the books upon rereads!).

I got plenty of things to note down to myself from both books, though I preferred former the most, because of its simplicity perhaps. The Notes section is pretty much as long as both books; each book gets a structural analysis (with criticism and weak points noted), integral arguments, and notes for reader (with commentary on choosing the right words, and finding quotes' sources - not all have sources that still exist. Some variety in quote-sources: from letters, poems etc.).

This book didn't feel as necessary as the Analects, hence my three and half stars, but it was not a chore to read the books, so it's certainly worth trying, if you're interested.

[J.D. Steens · Rating 2 out of 5]

The main texts of Confucian philosophy are said to be the Analects, Mencius, and the two short texts in this book, The Highest Order of Cultivation (or, The Great Learning), and On the Practice of the Mean (or, Doctrine of the Mean). According to the preface, the latter two books are viewed generally as "an inseparable pair." The former's focus is on the individual's moral cultivation. The latter's focus is on bringing about the self's alignment ("harmonious balance") with the way of the universe. As stated in the preface, both books tie together "the particular and the universal" and the "moral self and the metaphysical reality." In summary, both are about "the fundamental Confucian belief that the peace and harmony of the world cannot be achieved by force of arms, nor by power of law, but only by moral virtues and moral influence."

Throughout, "the Way" is central. In contrast to the impersonal Taoist Way,* the Confucian Way is fully integrated with who we are in our core and who we should be. The Doctrine of the Mean is about "the cultivation of our own nature as endowed by Heaven." The Mean is not Aristotelian. It is, rather, the integration and unification with cosmic harmony. This is a balance of forces and, perhaps, a stasis of sorts.

The attainment of this highest End is easiest for those who are born with a noble character. For others, an intervention is necessary via moral cultivation. The Doctrine of the Mean, though, also references those of mean character, of individuals who are either born this way or formed to be this way by experience or otherwise by ineffective moral cultivation. The Doctrine of the Mean does not address how its various moral pleadings do not work for those who, by nature or experience, have no motivation to change behavior to fit its ideals.

In this regard, the Taoist Way affords more realism by recognizing that, though there is an overall harmony of forces, that harmony can be brought about just as much by ignoble-mean forces as by the high aspirations of Confucian thought. Harmony can be acknowledged by imposition as well as by accommodation. The great energy streams of the Taoist Way cares not about which path is followed. It only cares that one way or another opposing forces be reconciled. This is not an idle philosophical objection. As opposed to an understanding of the Tao as impersonal energy, the Confucian Way lends itself to a peaceful resolution. And, it would seem, it is therefore biased against the use of countervailing power to defend against those of ignoble character who have no motivation to abide by Confucian ideals.

*The Tao is "the mystical source from which all things and all phenomena come into being. It exists before and after the formation of Heaven and Earth, standing alone and never changing, and yet functions as the way guiding humans to their destiny." It is "independent of humans, existing and functioning by itself and for itself. To reach the Way one must pursue the path of non-activity (wu wei)." While some may interpret withdrawal as quiescence, others might see more of an acceptance of and adaptation to the course of things rather than a preoccupation with controlling the course of things (i.e., the [N] American, Western way).

[Jian Lin · Rating 5 out of 5]

大學：本末倒置

[Chant · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ta Hsüeh and Chung Yung are no Mengzi (Mencius) or Kongzi (Confucius), even though these two "books" are commonly attributed to Kongzi. It however, is two of the four books considered part of the Confucian canon, so it has that going on for it.

The main idea of these books are just expounding more though on ideas found in the Analects and Mengzi.

Lastly, the book is written in Wade-Giles, which I completely hate, as I studied Chinese using pinyin. The only reason that this translation used that romanization is purely to fall in line with penguins Analects and The Mencius translations romanization (both translated by D.C. Lau), so it would make it feel more in line with those two other books.

I for one do not like the Wade-Giles and it really should have been in pinyin.

[Nicholas Whyte · Rating 2 out of 5]

http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/1387316.html

This is the Penguin edition of two of the Four Books of Confucian learning, their titles respectively translated as The Highest Order of Cultivation and On the Practice of the Mean. It is a bit of a shame that Penguin chose to stick to the old Wade-Giles transliteration; in the pin-yin more often used today the titles are Daxue and Zhongyong. (Or to be pedantic, 大學 and 中庸.) Although the two books are mercifully short, I found their conservative, paternalistic world view unappealing; a society built on this philosophy could easily become stagnated. I don't have much knowledge of China, and this was probably not a good place to start broadening it.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

eh

[Glenn Berger]

The one book I would take to a desert island. Two of the "Four Books" that every Chinese scholar revered for 2000 years. These concise texts are packed with infinite wisdom.