Text, Principle and Method: A Study on the Different Texts of the Chapter “Zeng Xi Yan Zhi” on Haihunhou Slips
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54097/kszzd210Keywords:
Haihun Hou’s slips; Zeng Xi’s statement; variations of “The Analects”; classical interpretation; unearthed documents.Abstract
In the “Analects of Confucius” unearthed from the tomb of Liu He, Marquis of Haihun in the Western Han Dynasty, Mr. Chen Kanli interpreted the chapter “Zeng Xi’s Statement on the Zhi” as “praising Yi, satirizing Wu, pouring and feeding”, and interpreted Zeng Xi’s ambition as a ritual of offering sacrifices to pray for rain, thus questioning the “popular nature” and “Yao and Shun atmosphere” theories of Song Confucianism. Chen Wen’s interpretation of the text is quite original, and it better solves the difficulties in the traditional interpretation of “Late Spring Bathing Water” and provides a new textual basis for re-understanding Zeng Xi’s ambition; however, the focus of his argument is mainly on the context of the Han Dynasty reflected in the unearthed documents, and relatively little attention is paid to the ideological and historical significance of the interpretation of the doctrines of Song Confucianism. Zeng Xizhi’s multiple interpretations not only reflect the openness of the text of The Analects itself, but also reflect the evolution of the interpretation of Confucian classics in different historical periods.
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