Wang ch‘ung lun-hêng philosophical essays Traduits et annotés par Alfred forke

We see that at present heaven is very high and far distant from the earth. The heaven of to-day is the same with that of antiquity. When Kung Kung damaged it, heaven did not fall down upon the earth. Nü Wa was human ; a man may be very tall, he never will reach up to heaven. When Nü Wa was repairing it, on _p1.252 what steps did she climb up, and on what did she stand, while doing her work ? Was the heaven of olden days perhaps like the roof of a hall, and not far distant from men, so that Kung Kung could destroy, and Nü Wa repair it ? If this was actually so, there would have been many Nü Wa’s. Of people living prior to Nü Wa the Human Emperors ² were the oldest. Was at the time of the Human Emperors heaven like a canopy ?

The commentators of the Yiking say that previous to the separation of the primogenial vapours there was a chaotic and uniform mass, and the books of the Literati speak of a wild medley, and of air not yet separated. When it came to be separated, the pure elements formed heaven, and the impure ones earth. According to the expositors of the Yiking and the writings of the Literati the bodies of heaven and earth, when they first became separated, were still small, and they were not far distant from each other, so much so, that heaven might well have reclined on the Pu Chou Mountain, and that Kung Kung could smash, and Nü Wa repair it.

All beings filled with air grow. Heaven and earth contain air, which develops spontaneously. A great many years have elapsed since their first beginning. Hence it is impossible to calculate the distance between heaven and earth now, whether it be wide or narrow, far or near. What the scholars write about it may so far be correct, the statement, however, that Kung Kung knocked against Mount Pu Chou, broke the ‘Pillar of Heaven’, and smashed the borders of the earth, that with liquefied multicoloured stones the blue sky was repaired, and that the legs of a sea-turtle were cut off, and set up as the four poles, is all the same untenable. Even though a mountain might be moved, Kung Kung’s force would not suffice to break it. Were at the time, when heaven and earth first separated, the mountains small and men great ? How else could they have knocked against a mountain, and broken it ?

The repairing of heaven by means of five kinds of stones may at least be discussed. These stones might have worked like mineral drugs curing a disease ¹. But the cutting off of the legs of a sea-turtle and putting them up at the four poles, cannot be mentioned in earnest. It is a long time since Nü Wa. Do the four poles look like the legs of a turtle ?

_p1.253 In Tsou Yen’s ² book there is a notice to the effect, that there are nine divisions of the Empire viz. the nine divisions forming the tributary land of Yü. The Nine Circuits of Yü are so to speak but one continent. If in the ‘Tribute of Yü’ ³ Nine Circuits are mentioned, they are the present Nine Circuits of the Empire. They are situated in the south-east of the earth and bear the name of Ch‘ih-hsien ⁴ or Shên-chou ⁵ (China). But there are eight continents besides. Each continent is hemmed in by the Four Seas, which are called Pai-hai ⁶. Beyond the Nine Continents there is still the Great Ocean ⁷.

This statement is extraordinary and bewildering to the hearers, but they are unable to make out, whether it be correct or not. Thus it is being handed down by books, which are read, or repeated by word of mouth. Reality and fiction are equally transmitted to posterity, and the world does not distinguish between truth and untruth. People become perplexed, and a discussion is very difficult.

The Grand Annalist ⁷ says : In the ‘Chronicle of Yü’ ⁸ it is said that the Yellow River has its fountain-head in the K‘un-lun, which is three thousand and five hundred Li ⁹ high. There where sun and moon hide in the K‘un-lun, it is full of splendour. On the mountain there is the Jade Spring and the Flower Lake ¹⁰. Now, after Chang Ch‘ien went as envoy to Bactria ¹¹, he traced the springs of the Yellow River, but did he see what the Chronicle relates about the Kun-lun ? In what it says about the nine divisions, mountains, and rivers the Shuking may be near the truth ¹², of the wonderful things to be found in Yü’s Chronicle and the ‘Mountain Book’ ¹³. I dare not express myself.

‘I dare not express myself’ means that there is no truth in them. Every one has heard about the height of the K‘un-lun, the Jade Spring, and the Flower Lake, but, when Chang Ch‘ien went there personally, he found that these things did not exist. In the ‘Tribute of Yü’ mountains, rivers, and wonderful things, precious metals and stones occurring in the Nine Circuits are all enumerated, but there is no reference to the Jade Spring or the Flower Lake on the K‘un-lun. In the opinion of the Grand Annalist the reports of the ‘Mountain Book’ and the ‘Chronicle of Yü’ are inventions.

_p1.255 In all things which are difficult to know, it is not easy to find out the truth.

The pole is the centre of heaven. At present the world lies south from the pole of Yü, therefore the heavenly pole must be in the north, heaven must be high there, and more people living in that region. According to the ‘Tribute of Yü’ the east is washed by the ocean, and the west covered with ‘flying sand’. These must be the extreme limits of heaven and earth.

When the sun pricks, his diameter measures a thousand Li. Now, if the sun is observed at his rise from Yin and Chih hsien ¹ in Kuei-chi on the eastern sea-shore, his diameter appears to be no more than two feet, which proves that the sun is still very far. Consequently there must be more land eastward. This being the case, the assertion about the pole being in the north and about the extension of heaven and earth is not made at random ². In this way the statements of Tsou Yen cannot be controverted, and what the ‘Chronicle of Yü’ says on mountains and seas, and Huai Nan Tse’s lucubrations on the shape of the earth appear unreliable.

Tsou Yen holds that at present the ‘land under heaven’ ³ lies in the south-east of the earth, and is called Ch‘ih hsien or Shên Chou. Now, the heavenly pole is the centre of heaven. If at present the ‘land under heaven’ were situated in the south-east of the earth, the pole ought to appear in the north-west. Since in fact it is straight north, the world at present lies south of the pole. In regard to the pole the world cannot lie in the south-east, hence Tsou Yen’s statement to this effect is wrong.

If it were in the south-east, it would be near to the sun’s rising place, and the light of the rising sun ought to appear bigger. Now, whether looked at from the Eastern Sea or from the Gobi, the size of the sun remains the same. Although the points of observation be ten thousand Li distant, it makes no difference in the size of the sun. That shows that at present the world occupies but a small part of the expanse of the earth.

The principality of Annam (Jih Nan i. e. the South of the Sun) is ten thousand Li distant from Loyang. People who had emigrated there, and came back, when asked, have said that, when the sun culminates, his resting-place cannot be in Annam. If we go ten thousand Li further south, the sun there must reach his south-point. Then the south-point of the sun would be twenty thousand Li distant from Loyang. Now, if we measure the distance of the way made by the sun from Loyang, it cannot be the same, as if we measure from the north-pole, because the pole is still very far from Loyang. Let us suppose that we went thirty thousand Li north. Even then we would not arrive under the pole. But provided we did, then we could say that we had reached the place just beneath the north-pole. Since from there to the south-point there would be fifty thousand Li, there must be fifty thousand Li north of the pole likewise, and under these circumstances there would also be fifty thousand Li from the pole eastward and westward in either direction. One hundred thousand Li from north to south, and one hundred thousand Li from east to west multiplied would give a million square Li ².

*

The Literati say that heaven is air, and therefore not far from man. Consequently it immediately knows, whether they are right or wrong, and whether they possess secret virtues or vices, and also responds to them. This is regarded as a proof of its vicinity. But, if we examine the question critically, we find that heaven’s body is not air.

CHAPTER XX

On the Sun

32. XI, II. Shuo-jih

In reality the sun neither leaves nor re-enters darkness, but how can we prove that ?

Night is darkness ; its fluid is also obscure ¹. But if a fire is made during the night, its light is not extinguished by the night. The darkness of night is the darkness of the north. The setting sun, which rises in the morning, is the kindled fire. The light of a fire, kindled at night-time, is not extinguished, that shows that, when the sun sets in the evening, a fluid ² cannot be the cause of his disappearance.

Observing the sun-rise and the sun-set in winter, we remark that, in the morning, he rises in the south-east, and, in the evening, he sets in the south-west. The south-east and the south-west are not the region of the Yin or darkness ³. How then can it be said that the sun proceeds from and reverts to darkness ? Furthermore, the stars notwithstanding their smallness remain visible, and the sun is extinguished in spite of his greatness ? The reasoning of the scholars of to-day is thoughtless and shallow.

They again say that the shortness of the days in winter, and their length in summer are also brought about by the Yin and the Yang. In summer, the Yang fluid abounds, and the Yin fluid falls short. The Yang fluid shines with the same splendour as the sun. Consequently, when the sun comes forth, there is nothing to obscure him. In winter, the Yin fluid is dusky, and overshadows _p1.259 the sun-light. Therefore, although the sun rises, he remains dark and invisible. Thus in winter the days are short. The Yin is paramount, and the Yang is scarce, just the reverse of what takes place in summer.

However, if we consider the question seriously, we will find that the Yin and the Yang are not responsible for the length or the shortness of the days. This is made evident by the northern stars. The Yin of the north is the Yin of the sun. The Yin of the north does not overshadow the sparkling of the stars, why then, should the Yin in winter obfuscate the brightness of the sun ? Hence those who speak about the Yin and the Yang miss the truth.

As a matter of fact, in summer the sun stands in Gemini, in winter in Aquila ¹. Aquila is far from the pole, therefore the curve described by the sun is short. Gemini being near the pole, the solar curve is long then. In summer the sun proceeds northwards as far as Gemini, in winter southwards as far as Aquila. Therefore the extreme solar points in winter and summer are called ‘winter’ and ‘summer limit’ ². Because in spring and autumn those extremes are not reached, one speaks of ‘vernal’ and ‘autumnal division’ ³.

Some people hold that in summer, when the Yang fluid abounds, it is in the south, and that in consequence heaven rises and becomes high. In winter the Yang fluid decays, and heaven sinks down, and becomes depressed. When heaven is high, the course of the sun increases in length, and the days are lengthened ; when heaven is low, the solar curve decreases, and the days are short.

Now, if owing to the exuberance of the solar Yang fluid, heaven rises in the south, and the course of the sun is lengthened, the same increase ought to take place in regard to the moon. In summer, when the days are long, the sun rises in the north-east, but the moon in the south-east. In winter, when the days are short, the sun rises in the south-east, whereas the moon rises in the north-east. If in summer heaven were raised in the south, sun and moon ought equally to rise in the north-east, and, if in winter heaven were lowered, sun and moon should both rise in the south-east. It results from this, that in summer heaven does _p1.260 not rise in the south, and that in winter it is not depressed. On the contrary, in summer, when the days are long, the stars from which the sun rises are in the north, and in winter, when the days are short, these stars are in the south.

The following question may be raised. In summer, in the fifth moon, when the days are long, the sun stands in Gemini, which are near the pole, therefore the course of the sun is long. Now, we see that in the fifth moon the sun rises in the sign Yin ⁴ and sets in Hsü ⁵. The solar curve being so long and far from men, how is it that we see the sun rise in Yin and set in Hsü ? When the sun stands in Gemini, he is very near to men. Gemini are near the pole, hence, when the pole turns round, they ought to remain always visible ⁶. Provided that Gemini are by the side of the pole, ought we not to have no night, but continuous day ? ⁷

Some scholars assert that sun and moon have nine different courses, therefore, they say, the sun in his course is near or far, and day and night are long or short. — However, in the fifth month day-time makes up 11/16 and night-time 5/16, and in the sixth month the day is 10/16 and the night 6/16. From the sixth month to the eleventh month every month the day decreases by 1/16. That means that to the course of the sun every month 1/16 is added. In the lapse of a year the sun takes 16 different courses on heaven and not 9 only.

Another idea is that heaven is high in the south and depressed in the north. When the sun rises into the higher region, he becomes visible, and when he sets into the lower one, he disappears. Heaven is believed to be like a reclining umbrella, which is shown by the fact that the pole, as seen from us, is in the north. The pole is the centre of the world. Since it is north from us, heaven must evidently resemble a reclining umbrella.

If to illustrate the shining of the sun the analogy of a reclining umbrella be used, heaven must really have the shape of an umbrella. The polar star in the north of the upper part would correspond to the top of the umbrella, the south in the lower part would be like the stick of the umbrella, but where would that be ? An umbrella reclining on the earth cannot turn round, but raise it straight, and it rotates. Now, provided that heaven revolves, _p1.261 its northern edge cannot touch the earth, for how could it revolve, if it knocked against the earth ? We see from this that heaven cannot be shaped like a reclining umbrella, and that the sun rising or setting does not follow the elevation, and the depression of heaven.

Some people maintain that the northern edge of heaven sinks down into the earth, and that the sun following heaven enters into the earth. The earth being massive, obscures him, so that men cannot see him. But heaven and earth are husband and wife. They unite in one body, heaven is in earth, and earth joined to heaven. Their fluids mix and produce things. The north is Yin. When both are coupled, and their fluids mingle, it is in the north therefore ¹, but does heaven revolve in the earth ? If not, the earth in the north would be depressed ², and not even.

Let us suppose that heaven really is revolving in the earth. On digging up the earth ten feet deep we find springs. Does then heaven revolving in the earth plunge into the water, and then come out again ? If the north were depressed and not level, the Nine Streams ³ ought to flow north without ever filling it up. In reality heaven does not revolve in the earth, nor does the sun become obscured, because he follows heaven. Heaven is quite as level as earth, and the sun rises, and sets, being turned round along with heaven.

Heaven appears to us in the shape of a bowl turned upside down. Therefore the sun rising and setting looks like coming from and entering into the earth. When the sun rises, he is near, when he sets, he is far, and becomes invisible, hence the term setting or entering. When in his rotation the sun appears in the east, he is near, hence we say that he is rising or coming out. But what proof have we ? If you attach a moonlight pearl to the bow over a cart, and turn the cart round, the pearl will also turn.

To men heaven and earth seem to unite at a distance of no more than ten Li. That is the effect of the distance, for they do not come together in fact. When we behold the sun setting, he does not set either, it is also the distance. At the time, when the sun sets in the west, the people living there will perhaps say that he is culminating, and looking from the point, where the sun is setting, eastward to our world, heaven and earth may appear to _p1.262 the beholder joined together. Our world is in the south ¹, therefore the sun rises in the east, and disappears in the northern regions ². If the sun rose in the north, be would set in the south ³, for everywhere, what is near seems to rise, and what is far, to set. In reality there is no setting, but it is the distance.

If standing on the shore of a big lake, you look out to its limits in the four directions, they are blended with heaven. As a matter of fact, they are not blended, but the distance gives this impression. Through distance the sun seems setting, and through distance the lake seems to be blended with heaven. It is the same in both cases. The lake is bordered by land, but we do not see it, for to the observer it looks, as if it were blended ⁴ with heaven. The sun also looks like setting. All this is brought about by distance.

The height of Mount T‘ai equals that of heaven, and is lost in the clouds, yet from a distance of one hundred Li the mountain does not appear as big as a clod of earth. At a distance of one hundred Li Mount T‘ai disappears, how much more the sun, whose distance from us is counted by ten thousands of Li ! The example of the T‘ai-shan gives an explanation.

Let a man take a big torch, and walk at night on a level road, where there are no gaps. He will not have walked to a distance of one Li from us, before the light of the fire is gone out ⁵. It does not go out, it is the distance. In the same manner the sun revolving westward and disappearing does not set ⁶.

The following question may be asked : Heaven is level as much as the earth. Now, looking up to heaven and regarding the movements of the sun and the moon, it seems as though heaven were high in the south and low in the north ¹. How is that to be explained ?