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| 說明 | 175 p |
| 附註 | Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 60-09, Section: A, page: 3400 |
| Chair: Liu Shu-hsien |
| Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong (People's Republic of China), 1999 |
| The main purpose of the present paper is to examine the relevance and the possibility of advancement of Chen Ming-Dao's (1032–1086A.D. a neo-Confucian master of the Sung dynasty) thought. I point out the advantages and limitations of Chen's thought through a comparative study. The object being compared is the thought of a twelfth century Cistercian mystic by the name of William of St. Thierry (1085–1147A.D.). The reason for comparing them is that their thoughts share a common form i.e. mysticism i.e. both of their thoughts are theories and practices of how to attain an ideal stage of being through grasping the ultimate reality by an intuition |
| In chapter two, I identify the main problem that Chen's thought was set out to solve as how to attain sagehood without being ascetic. Chapter three discusses Chen's solution to this problem. He comes up with a method of maintaining an unique attitude i.e. reverence (Ching) in a regular manner which in turn would transform one's interpretation of the world. Objects no longer appear as mere tools and means to gratify oneself. By so doing, one can reduce one's ego and lust so that the heavenly principle can operate without the hindrances of these sinful elements. The consequence is a stage called “Chéng” (being sincere) which in turn would make us truly the manifestation of the heavenly principle. The main advantage of this method is that one does not have to suppress one's desire and lusts. Asceticism has no place in his theory |
| William of St. Thierry's method of attaining an ideal stage of life is an monastic one. One is to learn the doctrine of Christianity and learn to obey the rules of St. Benedict. Then one is to learn to engage in contemplation of God which is a state of waiting to be satisfied by God's love only. The consequence is an ineffable experience of union with God. We have neither idea nor explanation as to how this experience comes about, but William interprets this as the union with God. This experience “affirms” God's faithfulness and Love, and it satisfies people's appetite for God's love. This results in people living in a life of oscillation between an ordinary life of loving God and mystical experiences of God's love which is the best possible life on earth for man according to William |
| William's thoughts and practices can bring vitality into the lifeless institutional church of our era. However, in practice, its monasticism and asceticism is not at all feasible in our society. Chen's method of using reverence to reduce one's lust and attachment to the worldly goods is favorable in amending William's monasticism. On the other hand, William's thought emphasizes the relation between basic spiritual needs and other human needs. He believes being satisfied by God's love, one would no longer need to gratify oneself with the worldly goods which cannot satisfy one's inner-most needs anyway. So one way to eliminate lusts is to be satisfied by God's love. In comparison, Chen's thought (in fact the whole Confucian tradition) has underestimated the importance of satisfying human inner-most needs pertaining to attain the ideal state of being |
| School code: 1307 |
| 主題 | Philosophy |
| 0422 |
| ISBN/ISSN | 0599475846 |
