Logic in the Development of"Four-line Doctrines"from Zhang Zai to Wang Yangming in Light of Comparison
Based on the previous studies of relevant issues,this paper is an attempt to explore the aptly neglectful topics in the recent studies of the"Four-line Doctrine",the purpose of which is to clarify the following aspects:1)the historical and cultural background in which the Neo-Confucianist four-line doctrines evolved;2)the difference and similarity between Zhang Zai's"Four-line Doctrine"and Wang Shouren's"Four-line Doctrine";3)the historical process of the Neo-Confucianist subject-object unification embodied in the four-line doctrines from the Song to Ming dynasties.Logically,Neo-Confucianism went on the path from the mutual inclusion of subject and object to the absolute unification of them in its development."The Four-line Doctrines"were products in the historic and cultural background of Chinese Buddhism,its intention and feature changing with the development of times;from the Northern-Song-dynasty Neo-Confucianism to the Ming-dynasty Neo-Confucianism,"the Four-line Doctrine"converted from the subject-object dichotomy of enterprising and responsible Confucianists to the subject-object unification of conscience-acquiring and perfecting Confucianists.Therefore,the application of the dichotomic formal logic to the studies of Neo-Confucianist four-line doctrines might not be essentially the right method to understand its philosophical height as it intends to develop Neo-Confucianism through Buddhism and embrace Buddhism in Neo-Confucianism.