After the disastrous collapse of the Míng dynasty and the establishment of the Qīng dynasty in the mid-sixteenth century, a significant change occurred in the traditional Confucian paradigm. The Yángmíng school of mind associated with Wáng Shǒurén lost popularity, and Zhū Xī’s school of principle began to regain the support of Confucian elites. A new intellectual trend resulted in numerous bibliographical studies of the classics. At the same time, strong emphasis was placed on the daily practice of Confucian moral norms and statecraft. As a result, some Confucian scholars gave up the ideal of sagehood.
Under these circumstances, the effects of quiet sitting came to be criticized more often than before, and, unlike their predecessors during previous dynasties, Confucian scholars of the eighteenth century onward did not actively engage in such practice, except under certain limited circumstances. Thus, in the late seventeenth century, discussions of the use of quiet sitting almost came to an end. The view prevailed that since quiet sitting was a dangerous approach, it should be used only sparingly.
Notes
1. Here I use the term “Neo-Confucianism” in a broad sense, referring not only to the school of principle (lǐxué) but also to another main stream of Confucianism during this period, the school of mind (xīnxué). For problems related to the usage of this terminology, see Tillman, “New Direction”; de Bary, “Uses of Neo-Confucianism”; and Tillman, “Uses of Neo-Confucianism.” Mayumi Yoshida translated my Japanese draft into English. This chapter is closely related to an article in Chinese on the same topic (Mabuchi, “Sòng-Míng shíqí Rúxué”).
2. Taylor, “Sudden/Gradual Paradigm,” discusses extensively the view of quiet sitting held by Confucian scholars from the Sòng through Míng dynasties (11th–17th century). Inspired by the Japanese scholar Okada Takehiko, Taylor has conducted extensive research on quiet sitting in premodern Chinese Confucianism, and he is considered the leading authority on this topic. However, the framework of sudden (dùn) and gradual (jiàn) used by Taylor does not fit quiet sitting well. Also, Taylor considers quiet sitting to be strongly related to the school of principle, but this is problematic.
3. Chén Lái, “Shénmì zhǔyì wèntí,” 359–84.
4. Lù Jiǔyuān jí, 471.
5. Zhào Bǎofēng jí, 19.
6. Chén Xiànzhāng jí, 145.
7. Luó Hóngxiān jí, 298.
8. See Mabuchi, “Kō Wan no shisō.” Huáng, however, later had a keen realization of the practice’s deficiency, and became critical of quiet sitting.
9. See Tomoeda, Shushi no shisō keisei, especially chapter 1, 1.
10. See Araki, Bukkyō to jukyō, 323–340.
11. On Zhū Xī and the issue of quiet sitting, see Róngjié Chén, “Zhūzǐ yǔ jìngzuò”; Azuma, “Seiza towa nanika”; Nakajima, “Shushi no seiza”; Taylor, “Chu Hsi and Meditation”; Yáng, “Sòngrú de jìngzuò shuō”; and Yáng, “Zhǔ jìng yǔ zhǔ jìng.” Azuma distinguishes Zhū Xī’s quiet sitting from that practiced by his master Lǐ Tóng and others to “seek inner awareness and self-awakening.” Azuma argues that Zhū Xī practiced quiet sitting only as a preparatory activity, to calm his mind before pursuing external issues. I am inclined to agree with Azuma, but I also believe that Zhū Xī was in an ambivalent position, in which he still retained some reminiscent influence of his master, and therefore also considered quiet sitting as nourishment of one’s true self. Tomoeda makes similar observations about the influence of Lǐ Tóng on Zhū Xī’s view of quiet sitting even during the later years of his life; cf. Tomoeda, Shushi no shisō keisei, 95ff.
12. Araki Kengo calls such a position as that taken by Zhū Xī “intermediary,” which I think is a precise description. Refer to Araki, Bukkyō to jukyō, 378–382.
13. Zhū Wéngōng wénjí, 24:3800.
14. Ibid., 23:2988.
15. See Azuma, “Seiza towa nanika.”
16. Wáng Yángmíng quánjí, 1230.
17. Ibid., 104f.
18. See Chén Lái, “Shénmì zhǔyì wèntí,” 272ff., for a summary of Wáng Shǒurén’s views on quiet sitting. See also Liǔ, “Wáng Yángmíng”; and Taylor, “Sudden/Gradual Paradigm.”
19. Wáng Yángmíng quánjí, 104f.
20. Appendix to Kǎogōng jí.
21. Xīyuán yíshū, 1:48.
22. Kǎogōng jí, 10:2.
23. Ibid., 9:20.
24. Xīyuán yíshū, 2:9f.
25. Ibid., 2:8, 11.
26. In Kǎogōng jí, 9:20, he explicitly states that he does not intend to ignore ordinary Confucian moral and ethics.
27. Xīyuán yíshū, 2:11.
28. It is well known that Wáng Shǒurén already had such tendencies. Araki Kengo has emphasized the importance of such views among late Míng intellectuals; cf. Araki, “Dèng Huòqú de chūxiàn.”
29. See Tomoeda, Shushi no shisō keisei, 59f.; and Azuma, “Shushigaku no shin kenkyū,” 438. According to Nakajima (“Shushi no seiza”) the term “quiet sitting” is found in the important sixth-century Chinese Buddhist text Móhē zhǐguān, and is given an important meaning in an official Confucian commentary to the Book of Changes, the Zhōuyì zhèngyì, in the seventh century. According to Nakajima, however, the term “quiet sitting” was not considered important in any of the three teachings until the eleventh century. Before the Táng period, however, both Daoists and Buddhists had often practiced sitting quietly to calm the mind while focusing on the inner self.
30. For Gāo Pānlóng’s opinion on quiet sitting, see Okada, Ō Yōmei, 426–430. See also Taylor, “Meditation in Ming Neo-Orthodoxy”; and Taylor, Cultivation of Sagehood.
31. Azuma, Shushigaku no shin kenkyū, 434ff.
32. Gāozǐ yíshū, 3:13–18. The original account is also quoted in Chén Lái, “Shénmì zhǔyì wèntí.”
33. Ibid., 8a:26.
34. Ibid., 8a:67f.
35. Ibid., 8a:30.
36. Tsurunari, “Kō Hanryō no kakubutsusetsu ni tsuite,” claims that the “investigation of things” (gé wù) practiced by Gāo Pānlóng was completely directed inward. However, this claim conflicts with Gāo’s emphasis on reading. I believe that in Gāo’s view, pursuing the principles of things by studying the classics should be seen as a process to confirm the concrete forms of the universal principle. See relevant discussions in Okada, Ō Yōmei, 416, 419f., 425, and 436.
37. Sānyútáng wénjí, 2:5f.
38. See Sōngyáng chāocún, 2:8–11.
39. See Sānyútáng shèngyán, 8:4. On this topic, see Chén Róngjié, “Bàn rì jìngzuò”; Qián Mù, “Zhūzǐ lùn jìng”; and Chén Jiànhuáng, “Bàn rì jìngzuò.”
40. We can say that “Tiáoxī zhēn” (Instructions for breathing regulation), written by Zhū Xī in the twelfth century, was the early onset of this later trend. See Miura Kunio, Shushi to ki to shintai, chapter 5.
41. I have discussed Wáng Jī’s use of regulated breathing in the context of inner alchemy in Mabuchi, “Jugaku no dokyō sesshu.”
42. Regarding Wáng Jī’s notion of “beyond good and evil,” see Shibata, “Ō Ryūkei no shisō.” On the philosophy of Wáng Jī, also see Péng, Liángzhīxué de zhǎnkāi.
43. Regarding these writings by Zhìyǐ, see Satō, Tendai daishi no kenkyū; and Ōno Hideto, Tendai shikan seiritsushi. For more details on Wáng Jī’s method, see his “Tiáoxīfǎ.”
44. Yán Jūn jí, 37. On the philosophy of Yán Jūn, see Zhōng Cǎijūn, “Yán Shānnóng.”
45. Yuán Huáng’s text is easily accessible, because a photocopy of its 1929 edition is included in the Dàozàng Jīnghuá, vol. 2, chap. 9. This version of the text must be a relatively faithful reproduction of the original work, since it is identical to the contents referred to in a correspondence between Yuán and a certain Mǎ Ruìhé regarding the text (included in Liǎngxíngzhāi jí, vol. 10). My examination of the text here is preliminary, leaving a detailed examination as a topic for future research. For a detailed account of the life, writings, and philosophy of Yuán Huáng, see
Sakai, Chūgoku zensho no kenkyū; and Okuzaki, Chūgoku kyōshin jinushi no kenkyū.
46. See Nakajima, “Shushi no seiza.”
47. Jìngzuò yàojué, 1f.
48. Ibid., 20–23.
49. Ibid.
50. Gāozǐ yíshū, vol. 3.
51. Wǔ Shǒuyáng, who was known as an accomplished practitioner of inner alchemy, considered himself to belong to the Lóngmén school of Daoism and developed clear and detailed descriptions of the skills of inner alchemy. His work is a clear expression of the trend for creating clearly written quiet sitting manuals, which became popular among members of the elite. A similar trend must have taken place in the world of Buddhism at the time.
Glossary
běnxìng 本性
Chán 禪
Chén Lái 陳來
Chén Lóngzhèng 陳龍正
Chén Xiànzhāng 陳獻章
Cìdì chánmén 次第禅門
dāntián 丹田
dùn 頓
Fù qī guī 復七規
Gāo Pānlóng 高攀龍
gé wù 格物
Guǎng’ài piān 廣愛篇
guān xǐ-nù-āi-lè wèi fā zhī zhōng 觀喜怒哀樂未發之中
Gù Xiànchéng 顧憲成
Huáng Wǎn 黄綰
jiàn 漸
jìng 靜
jìng 敬
jìngzuò 靜坐
Kùnxuéjì 困学記
Lǎozǐ 老子
lǐ 理
Liǎngxíngzhāi jí 兩行齋集
liángzhī 良知
Liǎofán 了凡
Lǐ Kědào 李可道
Lǐ Tóng 李侗
liúrù kūgǎo 流入枯槁
Liú Zōngzhōu 劉宗周
lǐxué 理學
Lóngmén 龍門
Lù Jiǔyuān 陸九淵
Lù Lǒngqí 陸隴其
Luó Hóngxiān 羅洪先
Miàofǎ 妙法
Míng 明 (dynasty)
Móhē zhǐguān 摩訶止観
nèidān 內丹
Niè Bào 聶豹
Okada Takehiko 岡田武彥
Qīng 清 (dynasty)
qī rì bìguān 七日閉關
qī rì lái-fù 七日來復
rén 仁
sì wúliàngxīn 四無量心
Sòng 宋 (dynasty)
Táng Shùnzhī 唐順之
tiān jí lǐ 天即理
Tiāntāi 天台
Tiáoxī zhēn 調息箴
Wáng Jī 王畿
Wáng Shǒurén 王守仁
wànwù yì tǐ 萬無一體
Wǔ Shǒuyáng 伍守陽
Xiǎo zhǐguān 小止観
xìng 性
xīng jí lǐ 性即理
xīnxué 心學
xuánjiě miàojué 玄解妙覺
Xuē Huì 薛蕙
Yán Jūn 顏鈞
Yáng Jiǎn 楊簡
Yángmíng 陽明
Yáng Shí 楊時
Yuán Huáng 袁黃
Yúngǔ 雲谷
Zhān Fùmín 詹阜民
Zhāng Shì 張栻
Zhào Xié 趙偕
Zhìyǐ 智顗
zhī xíng héyī 知行合一
Zhōuyì zhèngyì 周易正義
Zhū Xī 朱熹
Zōu Shǒuyì 鄒守益
Bibliography
Araki, Kengo 荒木見悟. Bukkyō to jukyō 仏教と儒教. Heirakuji shoten, 1972.
———. “Dèng Huòqú de chūxiàn jí qí bèijǐng” 鄧豁渠的出現及其背景. Zhōngguó zhéxué 中國哲學 19 (1998): 1–21.
Azuma, Jūji 吾妻重二. “Seiza towa nanika” 静坐とはなにか. In Azuma, Jyūji 吾妻重二, Shushigaku no shin kenkyū 朱子学の新研究. Tokyo: Sōbunsha, 2004.
———. Shushigaku no shin kenkyū 朱子學の新研究. Tokyo: Sōbunsha, 2004.
de Bary, William Theodore. “The Uses of Neo-Confucianism: A Response to Professor Tillman.” Philosophy East and West, 43, no. 3 (1993): 541–555.
Chén, Jiànhuáng 陳劍鍠. “Míng-Qīng lǐxuéjiā duì ‘bàn rì jìngzuò, bàn rì dú shū’ de zhēngyì jí qí yùnyòng” 明清理学家対 “半日靜坐半日讀書” 的争議及其運用. Éhú zázhì 鵞湖雑誌 327 (2002).
Chén, Lái 陳来. “Xīnxué chuántǒng zhōng de shénmìzhǔyì wèntí” 心學傳統中的神秘主義 問題. In Chén Lái, Yǒu-wú zhī jìng: Wáng Yángmíng zhéxué de jīngshén 有無之境－ 王陽 明哲學的精神. Beijing: Peking University Press, 2006.
Chén, Róngjié 陳榮捷. “Bàn rì jìngzuò, bàn rì dú shū” 半日静坐半日読書. In Chén Róngjié 陳榮捷, Zhūzǐ xīn tànsuǒ 朱子新探索. Shanghai: Huádōng shīfàn dàxué chūbǎnshè, 2007.
———. “Zhūzǐ yǔ jìngzuò” 朱子與靜坐. In Chén Róngjié 陳榮捷, Zhūzǐ xīn tànsuǒ 朱子新 探索. Shanghai: Huádōng shīfàn dàxué chūbǎnshè, 2007.
Chén Xiànzhāng jí 陳獻章集. Beijing: Zhōnghuá shūjú, 1987.
Gāozǐ yíshū 高子遺書. Wényuāngé sìkù quánshū 文淵閣四庫全書.
Huìān xiānshēng Zhū Wéngōng wénjí 晦庵先生朱文公文集. Zhūzi quánshū 朱子全書 24. Shanghai: Shànghǎi gǔjí chūbǎnshè, 2002.
Jìngzuò yàojué 靜坐要訣, by Yuán Huáng 袁黃. Dàozàng Jīnghuá 道藏精華. Vol. 2, chap. 9.
Kǎogōng jí 考功集. Wényuāngé sìkù quánshū 文淵閣四庫全書.
Kùnxuéjì 困學記. Gāozǐ yíshū 高子遺書. Vol. 3. Wényuāngé sìkù quánshū 文淵閣四庫全書.
Liǔ, Cúnrén 柳存仁. “Wáng Yángmíng yǔ Dào-Fó èr jiào” 王陽明與道佛二教. Qīnghuá xuébào 清華學報 13, no. 1 (1981), 27–52.
Lù Jiǔyuān jí 陸九淵集. Beijing: Zhōnghuá Shūjú, 1980.
Luó Hóngxiān jí 羅洪先集. Nanjing: Fènghuáng chūbǎnshè, 2007.
Mabuchi, Masaya 馬淵昌也. “Kō Wan no shisō ni tsuite: 16 seiki zenhan no shisō hendō kaimei no tame no 1 case study” 黄綰の思想について－ 十六世紀前半の思想変動解明の為の１ ケーススタディー. Chūgoku—shakai to bunka 中国－社会と文化, no. 3 (1988), 133–157.
———. “Mindai kōki jugaku no dōkyō sesshu no ichi yōsō—Ō Ki no shisō ni okeru dōkyō naitan jissenron no ichizuke o megutte” 明代後期儒学の道教摂取の一様相－ 王畿の思 想における道教内丹実践論の位置づけをめぐって. In Dōkyō bunka eno tenbō 道教文化へ の展望, edited by Dōkyō bunka kenkyūkai 道教文化研究会. Tokyo: Hirakawa shuppansha, 1994.
———. “Sòng-Míng shíqí Rúxué duì jìngzuò de kànfǎ yǐjí sān jiào hé yī sīxiǎng de xīngqǐ” 宋明時期儒學對靜坐的看法以及三教合一思想的興起. In Dōngyǎ de jìngzuò chuántǒng 東亞的靜坐傳統, edited by Yáng Rúbīn 楊儒賓, Masaya Mabuchi 馬淵昌也 and Halvor Eifring 艾皓德, 63–102. Taipei: National Taiwan University Press, 2012.
Miura, Kunio 三浦國雄. Shushi to ki to shintai 朱子と気と身体. Tokyo: Heibonsha, 1997.
Nakajima, Ryūzō 中嶋隆藏. “Shushi no seiza to sono shūhen” 朱子の静坐とその周辺. Toyō kotengaku kenkyū 東洋古典学研究, no. 25 (2008), 9–32.
Okada, Takehiko 岡田武彦. Ō Yōmei to minmatsu no jugaku 王陽明と明末の儒学. Tokyo: Meitoku shuppansha, 1975.
Okuzaki, Yuji 奥崎裕司. Chūgoku Kyōshin jinushi no kenkyū 中国郷紳地主の研究. Tokyo: Kyūko shoin, 1978.
Ōno, Hideto 大野栄人. Tendai shikan seiritsushi no kenkyū 天台止観成立史の研究. Kyoto: Hozokan, 1994.
Péng, Guóxiáng 彭國翔. Liángzhīxué de zhǎnkāi: Wáng Lóngxī yǔ zhōngwǎn Míng de yángmíngxué 良知學的展開—王 龍溪與中晩明的陽明學. Taipei: Xuéshēng shūjú, 2003.
Qián, Mù 銭穆. “Zhūzǐ lùn jìng” 朱子論靜. In Qián Mù 銭穆, Zhūzǐ xīn xuéàn 朱子新学案. Vol. 1. Chengdu: Bāshǔ shūshè, 1986.
> Sakai, Tadao 酒井忠夫. Chūgoku zensho no kenkyū 中国善書の研究. Tokyo: Kōbundō, 1960.
Sānyútáng shèngyán 三魚堂賸言. Wényuāngé sìkù quánshū 文淵閣四庫全書.
Sānyútáng wénjí 三魚堂文集. Wényuāngé sìkù quánshū 文淵閣四庫全書.
Satō, Tetsuei 佐藤哲英. Tendai daishi no kenkyū 天台大師の研究. Tokyo: Hyakkaen, 1961.
Shibata, Atushi 柴田篤. “Ō Ryūkei no shisō—ryōchisetsu no ichi tenkai” 王龍渓の思想 － 良知説の一展開. Chūgoku tetsugaku ronshū 中国哲学論集 1 (1975).
Sōngyáng chāocún 松陽鈔存. Wényuāngé sìkù quánshū 文淵閣四庫全書.
Taylor, Rodney L. “Chu Hsi and Meditation.” In Meeting of Minds: Intellectual and Religious Interaction in East Asian Tradition of Thought: Essays in Honor of Wing-tsit Chan and William Theodore de Bary. edited by Irene Bloom and Joshua A. Fogel, 43–74. New York: Columbia University, 1997.
———. The Cultivation of Sagehood as a Religious Goal in Neo-Confucianism: A Study of Selected Writings of Kao P’an-lung, 1562–1626. Missoula, MT: Scholars Press, 1978.
———. “Meditation in Ming Neo-Orthodoxy: Kao P’an-lung’s Writings on Quiet-Sitting.” Journal of Chinese Philosophy 6 (1979): 142–182.
———. “The Sudden/Gradual Paradigm and Neo-Confucian Mind-cultivation.” Philosophy East and West 33 (1983): 17–34.
Tiáoxī fǎ 調息法. Wáng Jī jí 王畿集. Vol. 15. Nanjing: Fènghuáng chūbǎnshè, 2007.
Tillman, Hoyt. “A New Direction in Confucian Scholarship: Approaches to Examining the Differences Between Neo-Confucianism and Daoxue.” Philosophy East and West 42, no. 3 (1992): 455–474.
———. “The Uses of Neo-Confucianism Revisited: A Reply to Professor de Bary.” Philosophy East and West 44, no. 1 (1994): 135–42.
Tomoeda, Ryūtarō 友枝龍太郎. Shushi no shisō keisei 朱子の思想形成. Tokyo: Shunjyūsha, 1969.
Tsurunari, Hisāki 鶴成久章. “Kō Hanryō no kakubutsusetsu ni tsuite” 高攀龍の「格物」説 について. Shūkan Tōyōgaku 集刊東洋学 68 (1992), 76–93.
Wáng Yángmíng quánjí 王陽明全集. Shanghai: Shànghǎi gǔjí chūbǎnshè, 1992.
Xīyuán yíshū 西原遺書. Taiwan National Library.
Asian Traditions of Meditation Page 37
