關於周子「太極圖說」的諸說與「無極而太極」的先後次序問題

The Problem of "Wu-chi erh t'ai-chi" in Chou Tun-i's T'ai-chi-t'u Shuo

10.29653/LS.199212.0004

黃甲淵(Chia-Yuan Hung)

無極 ； 太極 ； 周敦頤 ； wu-chi ； t'ai-chi ； Chou Tun-i

鵝湖學誌

9期（1992 / 12 / 01）

77 - 95

繁體中文

周敦頤是宋明理學的創始人，他的著作有《太極圖說》、《通書》以及《易說》。其中，歷史學者對於《太極圖說》的思想頗有異論。因爲《太極圖說》是「太極圖的解說」，但太極圖的來源是道教的「先天太極圖」與「無極圖」。這兩個圖都與道教煉丹成仙之術有關聯，因此有些學者把周敦頤的《太極圖說》歸入道家或道教思想。太極圖有多種，太極圖說亦有多種。在此所引用的《太極圖說》是經過朱熹的整理而流傳下來的。不過，筆者認爲朱熹所整理的《太極圖說》原文，合乎周敦頤的思想，與《通書》的思想不相矛盾。在《太極圖說》中最引起學者爭論的問題是「無極」與「太極」的關係。兩者是互相獨立的概念，還是一體的兩面？假如兩者爲二物，所謂「無極而太極」應解爲「太極生於無極」，如此便是老子的「有生於無」之義，而不是純粹的儒家思想，亦不與《通書》的思想一致。筆者反對這種解釋。筆者認爲太極是宇宙萬物的本源，即形而上者。此太極不同於老子的「無」，亦不同於陰陽未分的「元氣」。它是理，即絕對的、普遍的、無限的形上本體。無極只是太極的形容辭，表示太極的無限至極性與神妙的作用性。因此，無極是狀辭，即太極的遮詮；太極是實體辭，即表詮。無極與太極是一體的兩面，而不是互相獨立的。

Chou Tun-i is the pioneer of Neo-Confucianism, who opened the way to moral metaphysics for later Neo-Confucianism. His philosophical works include T'ai-chi-t'u shuo (太極圖說) , T'ung-shu (通書) , and I-shuo (易). Scholars have different opinions about T'ai-chi-t'u shuo (An Explanation of the Diagram of the Great Ultimate). Chou Tun-i's diagram is originated from the two diagrams, ”Hsien-t'ien t'ai-chi-t'u” (先天太極圖) and Wu-chit'u” (無極圖), which had been used by Taoists in their attempt to obtain the elixir for immortal life.In the Study of T'ai-chi-t'u shuo, the main point of controversy is the relation between ”wu-chi” (無極) and ”t'ai-chi” (太極) , which Chou Tun-I himself never explained. The clarification of their relationships had to wait for later commentators. Some scholars consider that ”t'ai-chi” comes from ”wu-chi”. In this interpretation, the word ”erh” (而) expresses temporal succession, and Chou Tun-i faithfully follows Lao Tzu's idea of ”being coming from non-being”. In this regard he is not a pure Confucianist. But I think that this interpretation is incompatible with the thought of T'ung-shu In this paper, I follow Chu Hsi's reading. According to this reading, the first statement ”Wu-chi erh tai-chi” should be explained as ”the Non-Ultimate and also (or, and yet) the Great Ultimate”. In this reading, the word ”erh” indicates not temporal succesion, but paradoxical identity.In my opinion, the term ”wu-chi” is a modifier of ”t'ai-chi”. The word ”chi” means axis or basis, the term ”t'ai-chi” expresses the fact that it is the great basis of the universe. However, this great basis of the universe has no relation to space, because it is not an entity with a form, yet is really the great basis of the universe. This reading, I think, is compatible with Chou Tun-i's entire philosophy, and doesn't contradict with the ideas expressed in Tung-shu.

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