The difference and connection between Confucianism and Taoism

Confucianism is represented by Confucius, Mencius, and other famous masterpieces, such as the Analects of Confucius.

The representative figures of Taoism are Laozi, Zhuangzi, etc., the more famous masterpieces, Tao Te Ching and so on.

Confucianism is about entering the world, Taoism is about leaving the world. Confucianism is about worrying about the world first, Taoism is about picking chrysanthemums under the east fence and seeing the south mountain leisurely. Confucianism is responsible for the rise and fall of the world, Taoism is politically insignificant, and art is eternal

Confucianism emphasizes etiquette, and respects the way of Confucius and Mencius

Taoism seeks to cultivate the body and cultivate the mind, and there is simple materialism

Complementarity between Confucianism and Taoism is an old and old topic in the study of Chinese philosophical history, however, from a different point of view and a different perspective, we can constantly provoke new thoughts from this ancient topic. However, from different perspectives and different sides, we can constantly arouse new thoughts from this old topic. From the inner, hidden and occult sense, the complementarity of Confucianism and Daoism has the connotation of gender culture; while from the outer, open and semiotic sense, the complementarity of Confucianism and Daoism has the function of aesthetics. For quite some time, according to the value orientation of Western realism affirmed by Marx and Engels, domestic scholars regarded Confucian aesthetics, which has the tradition of "Xing, Guan, Qun, and Grievance" and advocates the use of art to intervene in reality, as the main stream of Chinese classical art; and regarded the "extinction of the article, the scattering of the five colors, and the gluing away of the eyes of Zhu" as the main stream of Chinese classical art. On the other hand, the Taoist ideology, which "extinguishes articles, disperses the five colors, and "plugs the ears of goze", is regarded as the counter-current of cultural nihilism and artistic abolitionism. In the recent period, as a reaction to vulgar sociology, mainland scholars have echoed with the academia of Hong Kong and Taiwan, and found in the Taoist aesthetics of "great cleverness is like clumsiness, great eloquence is like speech," "great sound is like sound, and great elephant is like nothing," a style of writing and a realm of freedom that the Western modernists have only dreamed of. The style of writing and the realm of freedom, that represents the true spirit of Chinese art; in contrast, the Confucian set of "sentiments, stopping the rituals and righteousness" of the poetic tradition, but because of the eagerness to achieve quick successes and appear too narrow ....... It should be recognized that these two points of view have their own reasons, but put together, but also mutual disagreement, conflict with each other. The key to the problem lies in this either/or attitude can only see Confucianism, Taoism side of its one-sided rationality, but can not explain the dialectical relationship between the two each other "complementary", and its overall function in the history of Chinese aesthetics.

In my opinion, although the relationship between Confucianism and Taoism is quite complex and can be analyzed in different structural modes, in terms of the contribution to Chinese aesthetics, the function of Confucianism is mainly in the "construction", that is, to provide a certain kind of ordering, programming, symbolic rules and habits for the aesthetic activities of the Chinese people; the function of Taoism is mainly in the "deconstruction"; the function of Taoism is mainly in the "deconstruction"; the function of Taoism is mainly in the "deconstruction". The function of Taoism is mainly in "deconstruction", i.e., to dissolve the alienation phenomenon of Confucian aesthetics in the process of construction with the gesture of dissolving decorations, rules, and symbols, so as to maintain its free creative vitality. It is in this continuous process of "construction" and "deconstruction" that classical Chinese aesthetics has been able to develop in a healthy and sustainable manner, thus creating a miracle in the history of human art.

I

From the point of view of genesis, Confucianism has made a special contribution to the casting of the aesthetic psychological habits of the Chinese nation in the process of reconstruction of ritual and music culture. As we know, the difference between human beings and animals lies in the fact that human beings are a cultural animal, and culture is carried and mediated by symbols. In this sense, Cahill, the famous symbolism aesthetician, once pointed out that man is an animal of symbols. The Confucian, who made his profession of "mutual rites", was initially the controller and operator of such cultural symbols. "Some modern scholars believe that the predecessors of 'Confucianism' were the ancient wizards, historians, fortune-tellers and diviners who served the aristocracy; during the great upheavals of the Spring and Autumn Period, 'Confucianism' lost its original status, and because they were familiar with the etiquette of the aristocracy, they made a living as "Xiangli" (相礼), a profession of the aristocracy. ' as a profession for earning a living." (Encyclopedia of China-Philosophy, vol. ii. p. 73.) There is a certain basis for this view. Confucius said, "I am young and cheap, so I can do many despicable things," and "when I go out, I serve the ministers; when I enter, I serve my father and brother; I dare not be reluctant to do anything in mourning, and I do not get trapped by the wine, so why should there be any for me?" ("Analects - Zihan") is the best illustration. Of course, Confucius opened up the cause of Confucianism, is by no means limited to the control and operation of this external symbols, he wants to make the profession of "Confucianism" to become the "family" of thought, it is necessary to "benevolence" to explain the "rites" and "ceremonies" by "benevolence". In order to make the professional "Confucian" a "family" of thought, he had to find the support of internal ethical norms (values) for external behavioral norms (symbolic forms) by interpreting "rites" with "benevolence," thus overcoming the historical situation of chaotic and disordered cultural symbols, and maintaining the cultural tastes of the world. As the saying goes, "Rites and rituals, jade and silk, are in the clouds? Music, music, music, bells and drums?" (The Analects of Confucius - Yangguo), that is to say, in that era of "the collapse of rites and music", the revival of rites and music in Confucius is not only a simple material form, but also marks the boundary between human and non-human in itself. From the political sense, only by following the behavioral laws and hierarchy regulated by the rites and music itself, can we maintain a harmonious and moderate social order between people in the advancement and retreat, love and difference, that is, the so-called "Learning from the literature, about the rites, and can be carried away." ("Analects - Yan Yuan") from the cultural sense, only mastered the rites and music itself has a meaningful form of symbols, in order to make people in the warm, good, respectful, thrifty, let social interaction to maintain a higher than obscurantism and barbaric color civilized image, that is, the so-called "WenQiQinBin, and then the gentleman." ("Analects - Yongya") Although in Confucius, the construction of culture is to the reproduction of life and material security as a prerequisite, "Zi fit Wei, Ran You servant. Zi said, 'The common people are not enough!' Ran You said: 'That is, concupiscent, and what is added to it?' He said, 'Rich.' He said: 'If you are rich, why don't you add to it?' He said, 'Teach it.'" ("Analects of Confucius - Zilu") However, this "common" - "rich" - However, this gradual process of "teaching" also indicates that the construction of culture is the key to making people finally become human. Only in this sense can we understand why Confucius, who has always emphasized loyalty and filial piety to secure the nation and rule it with propriety and righteousness, would say, "I am with the point!" ("Analects of Confucius - Advanced") and other sighs.

Obviously, in the process of constructing this system of cultural symbols, people produce an artistic experience and enjoyment of beauty. For in the final analysis, "art can be defined as a symbolic language," and "beauty is necessarily and essentially a symbol," a "system of symbols" that encompasses both art and beauty. "gives us order in the appearance of the visible, the palpable, and the audible" and "allows us to see what is the deepest and most varied movement of the human soul" (Cahill's Theory of Man, Shanghai Translation Publishing House, 1985 edition, pp. 212, 175, 214 , 189 pages.) . On this point, our predecessors seem to have already realized something in the "Records of Music - The Book of Music": "Where sound is concerned, it is the one that gives birth to the human heart. Emotions are moved in the center, so they are shaped in sound; sound becomes text, and is called sound." "Music is also a universal ethic. Therefore, those who know sound but do not know music are beasts. Those who know the sound but not the music are also the common people. Only a gentleman can know music." Here, the distinction between sound, tone and music marks the important difference between beasts and men, and between savage and civilized men. The so-called "emotion is moved in the middle, so it is shaped in the sound" means that the sound coming from the mouth of a human being is the natural outflow of human emotion; however, when this natural outflow of emotion has not yet entered the symbol system, and it is still only a kind of sound that cannot be communicated, then it is the same as the howl of a wild beast: although it also expresses a certain emotion, but it is impossible to recognize it, and no one can understand it. No one can understand it. Only when this sound enters the system of symbols is it a "human" expression of subjective emotion, i.e., "the sound becomes a text, which is called sound". The "sound into a text" here can be understood as both the sound through the interweaving, combination and has a literary color, but also can be understood as the sound into the meaning of the symbol network and has a literary meaning. As a matter of fact, only when natural sounds enter the symbolic system of meaning can they be infinitely rich in complexity and diversity. Animals can produce a wide variety of sounds, but since these sounds can neither be differentiated in symbolic meaning, nor organized and reconstructed on the basis of such differentiation, they are always monotonous. In the final analysis, while both literary color and meaning are only possessed by human beings, this is exactly where the difference between human beings and non-human beings lies, "It is therefore those who know sound but do not know the sound, the beasts also." Further, once sound enters the symbolic system, it not only has the possibility of generalization, but also has an ethical meaning, i.e., "the deepest and most diverse movement of the human soul." Therefore, if people only know that sound can convey emotions but do not see the ethical connotations lurking behind such emotions that only human beings possess, then they are at best barbaric rather than civilized, so it is said that "those who know the sound but do not know the music are the common people. Only a gentleman can know music". The so-called "only gentleman can know music" sentence, put aside the Confucian class bias, it refers to a culture of people for the beauty of the diverse forms and multi-layered connotation of understanding and grasp. It is conceivable that without the set of ethical norms and rules laid down by Confucius on the basis of three generations of culture, the behavioral and emotional styles of ancient people would not only have become disorganized, but also monotonous and uninteresting. It can even be said that without the historical efforts of Confucius and his Confucianism to construct a culture of ritual and music, the Chinese nation, which is known as a "state of etiquette," would have remained in a state of obscurantism and barbarism for a very long time or to a large extent. This easily reminds us of the Song Dynasty's more or less exaggerated words: "Heaven does not give birth to Zhongni, and the ages are as long as night."

From the point of view of the "symbolic system," the ritual and music culture reconstructed by Confucius included three interrelated components: poetry, music, and dance. On the relationship between "ritual" and "music", there is a succinct analysis in the "Records of Music": "Music is the same, and ritual is different. If they are the same, they will be close to each other; if they are different, they will respect each other. If music wins, it flows, and if ritual wins, it leaves. Those who harmonize their feelings and decorate their appearance are also matters of rites and music." That is to say, "music" can communicate the emotions between people, and "rites" can identify the boundaries of superiority and inferiority. Light "music" and no "rites", the emotions between people will be laissez-faire, lack of order, less hierarchical concepts; light "rites" and no If there are only "rituals" but not "music", people of different status will be centrifugal, lacking a sense of communication and less cohesion. Therefore, the best way is to use "music" to help "rites" and "rites" to section "music", so as to achieve a kind of "harmony and difference" and "love". The best way is to use "music" to help "rites" and "rites" to economize on "music", so as to achieve a state of harmony and difference, and a state of love. From this we can see that the dialectical relationship between "rites" and "music" is the contradiction between "benevolence" and "rites" in the ideological realm. movement in the field of ideology. As the emotional symbol of this expression, "music" in the broader sense is composed of three elements: language (poetry), melody (music), and movement (dance). In short, when these elements *** companions communicate with people's hearts along with the rituals, it will cause an emotional *** sound and enjoyment of beauty. That's why "Analects of Confucius - Learning" will have "the use of etiquette, and for the precious. The way of the late king, Si for beauty". In other words, when these elements are developed independently, they will become different art forms and play their respective functions of beauty. That is why Confucius had to say, "If you don't learn poetry, you can't speak" ("Analects - Ji Shi") about poetry, and he had to say, "If you don't know the taste of meat in March," and "If you don't want to be happy, you can't be happy" ("Analects - Ji Shi") about music and dance. " ("Analects - Shui而"), and so on. In a sense, the relatively well-developed historical characteristics of poetry, music, dance and other expressive arts in ancient China can be found in Confucianism's unique way of constructing culture through rituals and music.

This historical effort of Confucianism to construct a culture of ritual and music has had a great and far-reaching influence on the formation of aesthetic mental habits and the establishment of artistic values in the Chinese nation, and it is even an exaggeration to say that it was created from scratch. However, the emotional symbols of art derived from the conceptual symbols of ethics have their inherent weaknesses and limitations. In terms of form, since the later Confucians did not really understand the profound meaning of Confucius' "restoring oneself to the rites", they kept on making great efforts on the external form of "rites", thus leaving us a set of rare and complicated rules and regulations in such writings as the Zhou Rites, Rites of Passage and Records of Rites, which made people feel that they were not the only people in the world who had ever heard of them. The red tape, so that people in the crown, marriage, funeral, sacrifice, Yan, enjoy, court, hire and other social activities in the hands and feet must be subjected to rigorous training, affected by the form of "music" is also from simple to complex, into a pile of carving trend. In terms of content, due to the hierarchical concept of "ritual" has always regulated the free imagination of "music", resulting in the development of art forms do not have the concept of updating the cooperation and support, so that all changes do not change, always in the "sentiments. It always turns in a circle in the emotional mode of "out of emotion, stopping at propriety and righteousness", from mediocrity to mediocrity. As a result, the initially creative activity of "construction" leads to a double alienation of form and content. In this case, the Taoist activity of "deconstruction" takes on a special historical significance.

Two

Hegel pointed out in his book "Little Logic" that there can be only one absolute logical starting point, that is, "there is", i.e., pure existence without any stipulation, but when this "there is" is so pure that it has no stipulation, then it is transformed into "there is", which has no stipulation. However, when this "something" is so pure that it does not have any stipulation, it is transformed into its own opposite, another logical link - "nothing". If we use this pair of categories to understand Chinese culture, then the goal of Confucianism's construction is "yes", while the goal of Taoism's deconstruction is "no". What is the same as Hegel's view is that Confucianism's "have" comes first, and Taoism's "have not" comes second, and the logical relationship between the two cannot be transposed, or else Taoism's deconstruction will become meaningless; what is different from Hegel's view is that Confucianism's "have" is not the same as Hegel's view. Unlike Hegel's view, Confucianism's "yes" is not consciously transformed into "no" due to a lack of prescriptiveness; on the contrary, it is precisely due to excessive prescriptiveness that it needs to be dissolved by "no" in order to realize a historical return. It is precisely because of its excessive prescriptiveness that it needs to be dissolved by "nothing" in order to realize a historical return.

As a result of this historical return, the founders of Taoism first questioned Confucianism's benevolence and morality at the ethical and political level. According to Lao Tzu, "When the Great Way is abolished, there is benevolence and righteousness; when wisdom comes out, there is great hypocrisy; when the six relatives are not in harmony, there is filial piety and kindness; when the country is in a state of chaos, there are loyal ministers." (Laozi - Chapter 18) Thus, he advocated, "Abandon wisdom, and the people will benefit a hundredfold; abandon benevolence and righteousness, and the people will return to filial piety and kindness; abandon skill and profit, and there will be no thieves or robbers." ("Laozi - 19 chapters") Zhuangzi even more intense, he directly to the "saints" crusade: "pure and simple not disabled, who is ?ti! If the white jade is not destroyed, who will be the guizhang! If morality is not abolished, then benevolence and righteousness will be taken! What is the use of rites and music if the temperament is not separated from it? If the five colors are not disordered, who will be the literary style? If the five voices are not disordered, who will respond to the six rhythms? If the rusticity of a craftsman is destroyed, it is the sin of the artisan; if the morality is destroyed, it is the fault of the saint." (Zhuangzi - Horseshoe) The reason why they were so resolutely opposed to Confucian ethics was that Lao and Zhuang found inequality in that set of relations between kings and ministers, freedom in that kind of etiquette of stooping and bending, and insincerity in those literate and refined appearances. At this level, the doctrine of Taoism does have the special significance of resisting alienation. However, since the reality of alienation against which Lao and Zhuang rebelled has its own rationality of historical existence, the rebellion itself cannot simply be affirmed in a philosophical sense. While rebelling against Confucian ethics, the founders of Taoism further directed their criticism at the set of cultural symbols constructed by Confucianism and attempted to completely deconstruct and subvert them. Laozi advocated "no worries in the absence of learning" (Laozi - Chapter 20), arguing that "the five colors make the eyes blind, the five tones make the ears deaf, the five flavors make the mouth feel good, the galloping and hunting make the heart crazy, and the hard-to-obtain goods make one walk in the wrong direction" (Laozi - Chapter 12). ("Laozi - twelve chapters") Zhuang Zi more intense, simply asserted: "Mew mess six law, hearty absolute Yuser, plug goze Kuang's ear, and the world began to contain its smart carry forward; destroy the article, scattered five colors, glue away from the eyes of Zhu, and the world began to contain its bright carry forward; destroy the hook and rope and abandon the rule of the work of the finger, and the world began to have its clever carry forward." ("Zhuangzi - pilfering suitcase") at this level, the doctrine of Taoism, and does have a certain counter-cultural color. However, because this countercultural tendency of Taoism has a special background and premise, the revolt itself cannot be simply denied in the sense of aesthetics. In other words, Taoism's "nothing" is directed against Confucianism's "something," and Taoism's "deconstruction" is directed against Confucianism's "construction. The "deconstruction" of Taoism is in response to the "construction" of Confucianism, and the "nothing" of Taoism is in response to the "something" of Confucianism, and the "deconstruction" of Taoism is in response to the "construction" of Confucianism.

In the sense of aesthetics, Taoism's deconstruction of the Confucian-constructed culture of ritual and music is mainly manifested in three aspects: the first is the deconstruction of the literary decorations, i.e., the elimination of all the decorative components attached to civilization on top of the material objects, so as to make it revert to the plain and simple chaotic form. We know that Confucius emphasized the dialectical relationship between "text" and "quality", and advocated that "quality is better than text is wild, text is better than quality is history" ("Analects - Yongya") under the premise of "text" or "text". The premise of "text" is still quite important, the so-called "Huanhou! The so-called "Huan Hu! The so-called "Zhou supervised the second generation, Yuyu huwenya" is the necessary precondition for "I am from Zhou" ("Analects of Confucius - Eight Row of Row of Dancers"). When talking about the cultivation of human beings, Confucius said, "If Zang Wuzhong's knowledge, Gongchao's lack of desire, Bian Zhuangzi's courage, Ran Qiu's art, and Wen with the rites and music, one can be an adult." ("Analects of Confucius - Xianqian") here the so-called "text with rituals and music", that is, the rituals and music as a kind of decoration and attached to the human body, so that it has a noble quality and cultural meaning. When talking about articles and rhetoric, Confucius said, "For the order, Beneficial Chen drafted it, Shishu discussed it, Pedestrian Ziyu modified it, and Dongli Ziyan embellished it." ("Analects - Xianqian") Here the so-called "modification of", "touch-up of", is obviously a kind of rhetorical processing and language decoration. When it comes to art appreciation, Confucius said, "The beginning of the division of the best, the chaos of the Guan Ju, the ocean is full of ears!" ("Analects of Confucius - Tai Bo") here the so-called "Yang Yang Yu Ying Er Ya", is undoubtedly cohesion of the artist's approach and craftsmanship. This kind of thought, in the later Confucians where the expression is more clear, Xunzi said: "nature, the beginning of the material is also simple; pseudo, Wen Li Longsheng also. If there is no sex, then there is nothing to add to the pseudo, and if there is no pseudo, then sex cannot be beautiful." ("Xunzi - Treatise on Rites") ....... However, this type of cultural endeavor, which is "like cutting and polishing, like faceting and grinding" (see Analects - Xue Er, quoting the lines from the Book of Poetry), in the view of the Taoists, is precisely contrary to nature and human nature. According to Laozi, "the Way is as clear as obscurity, and the way of advancement as retreat" (Laozi - Chapter 41), and "the splendor of the Way is the beginning of foolishness" (Laozi - Chapter 38) as well! In this case, all man-made efforts, the pursuit of civilization, not only can not approach the "Tao" of the original realm, but instead, the back of the "Tao" and run counter to it, creating a large pile of false, distorted, mixed-up cultural garbage. --"The dynasty is very removed, the field is very barren, the warehouse is very empty, the dress is colorful, the sword is sharp, the food is loath to eat and drink, and there is a surplus of wealth and goods, which is called the theft of the yu. It is not the Way!" (Laozi - Chapter 53) In such a situation of "increasing learning for the sake of learning, and decreasing Taoism" (Laozi - Chapter 48), he advocated that it would be better to give up excessive sensual enjoyment and spiritual desires, and to "do nothing for the sake of doing, do nothing for the sake of doing, taste nothing for the sake of tasting" (Laozi - Chapter 63), in order to have a simple and simple way of living. Sixty-three" (Laozi - 63), in the simple and rustic life to experience the pure and primitive joy of life, to enter a "see the vegetal and embrace the pristine, less selfish and less desirous" (Laozi - nineteen chapters) of the realm. Zhuang Zi and his students are also skeptical and critical of the man-made efforts of carving and decorating: "Ox and horse four feet, is called heaven; fall horse head, through the nose of the ox, is called human. Therefore, it is said that there is no man to destroy heaven, no reason to destroy life, and no martyrdom to gain a name. To be prudent and not to lose is to be anti-truthful." ("Zhuangzi - Qiushui"), thus advocating that "human music" is not as good as "earth music", "earth music" is not as good as "heaven music", and "heaven and earth have great beauty. In the same vein, "Heaven and earth have great beauty but do not speak of it, the four seasons have clear laws but do not discuss them, and all things have their own reasoning but do not speak of it. The saints, the original heaven and earth's beauty and reach the reason of all things, is why the supreme man does not do anything, the great saint does not do, the view of heaven and earth is also called." (Zhuangzi - Zhi Beiyou) It can be seen that the old, Zhuang deconstruction of this effort to decorate, not only has a negative role in the destruction, but in the process of dissolving cultural symbols in the search for a return to nature, the law of the heavens and the noble truth of the new aesthetic significance.

Secondly, on the basis of deconstructing the external decorations of material objects, Taoists also want to further deconstruct the inner laws that Confucianism follows in creating cultural symbols. As we have said, in Confucius, cultural symbols such as "rites" and "music" are the symbols of "benevolence" and "propriety". values in the ideological field, therefore, as special "emotional symbols", the law of creation followed by art is entirely determined by its behavioral standard of "too much, too little" and its thinking mode of "the middle way". As a special "emotional symbol", the law of creation followed by art is entirely determined by its behavioral standard of "too much, too little" and its "middle way" thinking mode. Confucius has always advocated the use of reason to restrain emotions and "drawing after the fact" (Lunyu - Eight Rowdies), which, in the words of Yan Yuan, means, "The husband is good at seducing people, and he is good at writing, and he is good at etiquette" (Lunyu - Zihan). It is only with this approach to art that masterpieces such as Guan Ju (关雎), which are "joyful but not obscene, sorrowful but not hurtful" (《论语-八佾》), which conform to ethical and moral standards, can be created and serve the purpose of "the evil of the purple that takes away the Zhu, the evil of Zheng's voice that disrupts the elegance of music, and the evil of the sharp-tongued that overturns the state" (《论语-八佾》). " ("Analects of Confucius - Yangguo") and other warnings ....... In the Taoist view, however, since the set of ethical standards followed by Confucianism is itself questionable, it is even more inadvisable to use it to prescribe the utilitarian value of art. According to Laozi, art should not be used as a means of limiting and distorting man's natural emotions, but rather, man's life and art should be allowed to follow the laws and regulations of nature, in order to enter into a realm in which "man follows the law of the earth, the earth follows the law of the heavens, the heavens follow the law of the road, and the road follows the law of nature" ("Laozi - Chapter 25"). In this realm, art is simple, natural, and non-utilitarian, and it is only with these three prerequisites in mind that people's artistic activities can realize free imagination and continuous creativity, which is known as "the way of heaven, which is not to be fought for but to be won over, which is not to be spoken for but to be responded to, which is not to be summoned but to come, and which is yet to be planned for" (Lao Tzu - Chapter 73). (Laozi - 73 chapters) This "purposelessness" seems to be more in line with the law of artistic creation than the Confucian view of "love is born out of love, and it stops at propriety and righteousness". Zhuang Zi and his followers also believe that: "The right is quiet, the quiet is clear, the clear is virtual, the virtual is no action and no inaction." ("Zhuangzi - Gengsang Chu") and on this basis developed a set of "multiply things in order to swim in the heart" of life - the state of art. The so-called "multiply things" is to follow the laws and regulations of nature; only by conforming to nature to the maximum extent can we "swim in the heart" - to realize the freedom and liberation of the spirit. This is just like the Butcher to solve the cow, only "according to the principles of heaven", "because of its natural", can "to no thick into the interstices, to restore its edge in the swimming edge will have room to carry on", and even "like a sound to the sky", "nothing is not in the sound, in the dance of the Sanglin, is in the meeting of the head of the Jing." ("Zhuangzi - Nourishing Lord") It can be seen that the old, Zhuang deconstruction of the laws of art, just to abandon the man-made utilitarian standards, not to trample on the objective laws of nature; on the contrary, in dealing with the dialectical relationship between nature and freedom, the Taoist "deconstructed" activities are its unique insights and creativity.

On the basis of deconstructing decorations and laws, the extreme development of Taoist thought is the deconstruction of the linguistic symbol system, which is the carrier of cultural phenomena. As we know, long before Confucius, the system of cultural symbols centered on rituals and music already existed, but due to the lack of ethical values to support this system is very loose and very weak. The so-called "construction" of Confucianism is to support the symbolic system of "rites and music" with the values of "benevolence", so as to overcome the situation of "rites and music in disrepair". The situation of "the collapse of rites and music" was overcome. In response to the chaotic status quo of the cultural symbol system at that time, Confucius once issued the question, "Goblet or not goblet, goblet is goblet! Goblet!" ("Analects - Yongya"). In his view, the confusion of surface symbols such as "goblet or not goblet" implies the shaking of deeper values such as "ruler or not ruler" and "minister or not minister". Therefore, he strongly advocated to reorganize the values and symbols system by "correcting the name" and straightening out the relationship between the two: "If the name is not correct, there will be no words; if there is no words, there will be no deeds; if there is no deeds, there will be no rites and music; if there is no rites and music, there will be no punishment; if there is no punishment, there will be no mistakes for the people. If the punishment is not neutral, the people will have nothing to worry about. Therefore, a gentleman's name must be verifiable, and his words must be feasible. A gentleman's name must be acceptable, and his words must be practicable. A gentleman's words must be acceptable, and his words must be practicable. ("Analects - Zilu") In fact, in the process of Confucius expressing his views, we can also find that he is very careful and confident in the use of language symbols. For example, when talking about the character of a benevolent person, Confucius said, "Respectfulness, generosity, trustworthiness, sensitivity, and beneficence. If you are respectful, you will not insult; if you are generous, you will win the crowd; if you are trustworthy, you will be appointed; if you are sensitive, you will be successful; and if you are favorable, you will be able to make people happy." (Lun Yu - Yang Shou) In talking about the artistic function of poetry. Confucius said, "Poetry, can rise, can be viewed, can be grouped, can be complained." ("Analects of Confucius-Yangguo") Although Confucianism is not very interested in logic and rhetoric, all of this, at least, illustrates the affirmative attitude of Confucius and others toward linguistic symbols ....... However, in Taoism, which is capable of "deconstruction", the attitude towards linguistic symbols is just the opposite. Lao Zi said: "Tao can be Tao, but not Tao; name can be name, but not name." (Lao Zi - Chapter 1) (Laozi - Chapter 1) In his view, it is impossible to express the true ontological content with linguistic symbols, and once we use limited symbols to describe "Tao", the infinite implications of this ontology will inevitably be obscured, which is called "Tao is hidden without a name. This is the so-called "Tao is hidden without a name" (Laozi - XLI). Under his influence, Zhuang Zi also saw the limitations of linguistic symbols: "The Tao is not to be heard; it is not to be heard; the Tao is not to be seen; it is not to be seen; the Tao is not to be spoken; it is not to be spoken. Knowing the form of form is not form? The Tao is not proper to be named." ("Zhuangzi - Zhi Beiyou") and went on to point out that: "the world of the precious road book also, book but language, language is also expensive. The language of the precious meaning is also, the meaning of some follow; the meaning of the followers of the unspeakable also, and the world because of the precious words to pass the book. Although the world is expensive, I am still not expensive enough, for its expensive is not its expensive. Therefore, those who can see, shape and color; listen to those who can hear, name and sound. Sadness! The world takes form, color, fame, and sound as sufficient to gain their affection. If form, color, name and sound are not enough to get their feelings, then those who know do not speak, those who speak do not know, and the world will not know it!" (Zhuangzi - The Way of Heaven) In this way, the whole language symbol system composed of forms, colors, and names has been deconstructed. However, Zhuang Zi deconstructed the language symbol system, not to abolish the system, but only to use the language to achieve beyond the meaning of the symbols. Zhuangzi's "Outer Things" says: "The Tsuen is so in the fish, get the fish and forget the Tsuen; the hoof is so in the rabbit, get the rabbit and forget the hoof; the words are so in the mind, get the mind and forget the words." Since this kind of deconstruction of surface symbols and the pursuit of deeper meaning are mutually exclusive, therefore, like the deconstruction of decorations and laws, the efforts of Lao and Zhuang to deconstruct symbols are not entirely negative, in fact, it is precisely on another level close to the mystery of artistic language.

From the above threefold deconstruction, it can be seen that the historical contribution of Taoism to Chinese aesthetics is presented precisely as the antithesis of Confucian aesthetics. In terms of aesthetic ideals, simplicity itself is not beautiful; only the reversal of simplicity to truth is beautiful. Therefore, if there is no Confucian culture of rituals and music, which is far from the primitive form, the state of life pursued by the Taoists, "living with the beasts and the birds, and living with all creatures" (Zhuangzi - Horseshoe), will have no aesthetic value to speak of. In terms of artistic disciplines, if there is a direct kinship between Confucian aesthetics and music and dance, then Taoist aesthetics has had a more far-reaching impact on the art of painting and calligraphy. Wang Wei, the great poet and painter of the Sheng Tang Dynasty, advocated, "In the Tao of painting, ink and water are the most superior; the nature of nature is originated, and the work of creation is accomplished." ("Landscape Know-how"), which obviously contains the idea of Laozi's "Taoism Law of Nature"; Zhang Yanyuan, a painting theorist of the Late Tang Dynasty, believes that: "Grass and trees are in full bloom, not waiting for the color of Dan and green; clouds and snow drift, not waiting for the white of lead and powder. The mountain does not wait for the empty green and green, the phoenix does not wait for the five colors and . Therefore, to use ink and five colors is said to be satisfactory." ("The famous paintings of the ages - on the painting of the body of work with the topography of writing") which is undoubtedly permeated by the Zhuangzi "get the idea and forget the words" spirit. Therefore, as Xu Fuguan said: "The spirit of art in Chinese culture, in the final analysis, there are only two typical of Confucius and Zhuangzi. The typical of the unity of benevolence and music shown by Confucius, which is the unity of morality and art in the place of exhaustion, can be used as the standard course for the ages; ...... the typical shown by Zhuang Zi, which is thoroughly the character of pure artistic spirit, and is mainly crystallized in the painting above." (The Spirit of Chinese Art, Spring Breeze Literary Publishing House, 1987 edition, p. 5.) It is only that I do not quite agree with the distinction between Confucianism and Taoism in terms of "pure" and "impure" artistic spirit. If Confucian aesthetics emphasizes "goodness", its extreme development will inevitably lead to "ethicism"; while Taoist aesthetics pursues "truth", its extreme development will inevitably lead to "naturalism". The Taoist aesthetics pursues "truth", and its extreme development will inevitably lead to "naturalism". In terms of their ultimate value orientation, none of them is pure "beauty" or "art". However, "beauty" and "art" are precisely in the midst of "goodness" and "truth", between "goodness" and "truth", between "ethicism" and "naturalism". Therefore, just as Confucianism's "construction" needs Taoism's "deconstruction" to be constantly cleansed in order to avoid "alienation", Taoism's "deconstruction" also needs Confucianism's "deconstruction" to be constantly cleansed in order to avoid "alienation". The "deconstruction" of Taoism needs the "construction" of Confucianism to be constantly remedied in order to prevent "nihilization". In fact, it is precisely under the impetus of the necessary tension between Confucianism and Taoism that Chinese aesthetics can display a colorful style and develop healthily.

Three

In short, unlike Confucianism, which decorates the logical, orderly, and symbolic world of aesthetics by means of "construction," Taoism seeks a non-logical, non-orderly, and non-symbolic aesthetic world by means of "deconstruction. The world of aesthetics is non-logical, non-orderly, and non-symbolic. If Confucianism's endeavor is a process of creating something from nothing, from simplicity to complexity, and its pursuit is the realm of "fullness is beauty" ("Mengzi - Under the Heart of Perfection") and "impurity is not enough to be beautiful" ("Xunzi - Counseling the Learning"); then Taoism's endeavor is a process of deleting the complex and simplifying the complex, removing the obscurity, and making the world of aesthetics more beautiful. The Taoist endeavor is a process of simplifying and deconstructing, and its pursuit is the realm of "the great sound, the great elephant is invisible" ("Laozi - 41"), and "simplicity and the world can not compete with the beauty" ("Zhuangzi - The Way of Heaven").