加密数字货币交易所-《论语》详解：给所有曲解孔子的人-子曰：人能弘道，非道弘人

Confucius said: “If people can promote the Way, it is not the Way that promotes people.”

Detailed explanation: This sentence is somewhat different from the previous ones; its literal meaning is very simple. “弘” means “to make bright and grand.” “People can promote the Way, but it is not the Way that promotes people.” In other words, “People can make the Way shine brightly, but the Way itself cannot make people shine.” However, what is simple on the surface often becomes more complex in understanding. This simple sentence delineates the fundamental view of the relationship between “people” and “the Way” in the Analects and Confucianism.

There is a very bad tradition that always seeks “the Way” in the realm of emptiness and illusion. This trick has deceived those whose hearts are restless for thousands of years. But for the Analects and Confucianism, such tricks are ineffective. Confucianism has always been rooted in the worldly, regardless of what “the Way” is; ultimately, it must be realized through “human responsibility.” In the Analects, “the Way” only refers to “the Way of the Sage,” which is related only to the worldly and to “people not angered.” Any tricks that blindly chase after the intangible are merely tricks.

Another even worse tradition is to suppress “people” with “the Way,” depicting “the Way” as an elusive distant vision, then making real “people” bear the burden for this distant, intangible vision. This is more cruel than “one general’s victory costs thousands of lives.” The latter at least has a “victory” that everyone can scorn. But when “the Way” is deliberately or unintentionally dressed up as an elusive distant vision, even the scorn for it becomes absurd, part of a false theatrical play. This kind of tragic absurdity has been repeated throughout history.

But compared to the above two, the following is even less significant. Such people have always existed in history—they regard themselves as “those who attain the Way” or “those who practice the Way,” claiming to represent “the Way.” They become gods among men, set laws for the world, and anything that contradicts them is considered a great treason. These people are the most numerous in history, often appearing righteous and benevolent, claiming to save the people from water and fire, yet secretly engaging in deeds that are intolerable to “people.” People who “use private notions of the Way to command others” are not rare. And “the Way” is the Great Path, the universal truth, not a petty or private path belonging to any individual or group. Only “people” can make “the Way” shine brightly; without “people,” no “Way” can allow “people” to flourish.

The manifestation of “the Way” emerges in the present existence of “people.” Without the present and worldly context, it can only be an elusive distant vision, unrelated to the “Way of the Sage” in the Analects and Confucianism. Here, we see more clearly the fundamental differences previously mentioned between the Analects, Confucianism, and Western philosophies such as Plato, Christianity, and scientism. For the latter, “the Way” can promote “people”; in Plato’s view, “the Way” is the light of reason; in Christianity, “the Way” is God; in scientism, “the Way” is science. But for the Analects and Confucianism, it is “people” who can promote “the Way.” Rational light, God, and science all depend on “people.” Without “people,” these so-called “Ways” have no meaning whatsoever. It is precisely this spirit of the Analects and Confucianism that has prevented Western-style religion from ever flourishing in China.

Some may ask whether this means that the Analects and Confucianism deny objective laws. Actually, such a question presupposes a Western academic mindset. For the Analects and Confucianism, the existence of objective laws is not a primary concern; whether they exist or not, “people” must bear responsibility. In the “Heaven, Earth, and Humanity” model, objective laws belong to the realm of “Heaven and Earth,” forming the stage for “people” to manifest themselves. To use an analogy, for an actor called “people,” no matter how the stage is, performing well is most important. A good actor will make full use of the current, real conditions of the stage, regardless of how it is. The Analects and Confucianism do not deny the existence of objective laws, but these laws only constitute the stage for “people’s” activities, not the performance or manifestation of “people.” For the Analects and Confucianism, “the Way” specifically refers to the “Way of the Sage” in the present world, not to the ontological, primal, or law-like entities as generally understood. This point needs to be repeatedly emphasized to those heavily influenced by Western thought.

Some mistakenly categorize Confucianism as a Western “human-centered” paradigm, which is entirely unfounded. The “people” in Confucianism are discussed within the cosmic structure of “Heaven, Earth, and Humanity,” and do not require a “human-centered” ideology to “center” on humans. Once “human-centered” becomes an ideology, it loses all initiative and turns into an ideological farce. Using Western “structural” paradigms to examine Confucian “Heaven, Earth, and Humanity” structures, especially the “people” within, is equally misguided. In the “Heaven, Earth, and Humanity” framework, “people” are not a constitutive element but a manifestation; “Heaven and Earth” are merely the stage for “people” to display themselves, and all of this is rooted in the present, worldly reality. Here, “people” has two meanings: one is the gentleman who “hears, sees, learns, and acts” according to “the Way of the Sage,” and the other is the “people who do not understand”—those who temporarily cannot “hear, see, learn, and act” according to “the Way of the Sage.” These two types of people constitute all humanity; in modern terms, they include everyone in society.

Therefore, based on these two different meanings of “people,” the phrase “People can promote the Way, but the Way cannot promote people” must be understood from at least two perspectives: First, for the gentleman who “hears, sees, learns, and acts” according to “the Way of the Sage,” their “hearing, seeing, learning, and acting” can make “the Way of the Sage” manifest and emerge. But this does not mean that their “hearing, seeing, learning, and acting” makes them superior or above others, nor does it mean they become so-called elites, or use the banner of “the Way of the Sage” to practice their private paths. Second, for those who “do not understand” and cannot “hear, see, learn, and act” according to “the Way of the Sage,” the manifestation and emergence of “the Way of the Sage” cannot be separated from them. They must transform the world of “those who do not understand” into a world where “people are not angered.” This cannot be achieved without the “people who do not understand.” They cannot use an abstract, elusive “Way of the Sage” to exploit those who “do not understand,” treating them merely as a stepping stone for this abstract, elusive “Way of the Sage.”

“People can promote the Way, but the Way cannot promote people” ultimately boils down to one point: “the Way” is not the goal; only “people” are the goal. Only the “people” in reality are the goal. All pursuits that aim at the vague, illusory so-called “Way,” and use “people” in reality as means—such as “hearing, seeing, learning, and acting” in the name of “the Way of the Sage”—are contrary to the teachings of the Analects. For the Analects, Confucius, and Confucianism, “people” are both the beginning and the end. “The Way” is a means; even “the Way of the Sage” is merely a way to transform the “world of those who do not understand” into a “world of those who are not angered.” From start to finish, it cannot be separated from “people.” “The Way” is for “people” to practice, not the other way around; “the Way” is to make “people” shine, not “people” to make “the Way” shine. Only with this understanding can one initially grasp the meaning of “People can promote the Way, but the Way cannot promote people.”

When people are cast into this world without any foundation, it is their present existence— their responsibility. This constitutes the non-hierarchy of human beings. People “are born without a fixed position, and without a fixed foundation,” and only then can human society exist and develop, and individuals can exist and develop. There are no so-called tragedies, comedies, or dramas here. Without “people,” there is no heaven or earth, no stage for human manifestation. So where do tragedies, comedies, or dramas come from? They are merely the display of hierarchy arising from the fact that “people are born without a fixed position and without a fixed foundation.” The so-called assumptions of reason and emotion—if there are no “people,” where do reason and emotion come from? Here, only responsibility exists—human responsibility. First and foremost, it is the responsibility toward “people.” Through this responsibility, there arise so-called joys, sorrows, emotions, wisdom, perceptions, desires, and conflicts. Only in this way can we further understand what “People can promote the Way, non the Way promotes people” truly means.