孔子 (551-479BC) 和苏格拉底 (469-399BC) 是历史上两个著名的思想家。他们对中西文化各自有重大影响。人们常把苏格拉底说成是西方的孔子。
可是我们知道这两个思想家是不同的，主要因为它们生活在不同的社会、文化、政治环境里。
我们注意到孔子所生活的周朝已达到高度成熟的政治文化、交易系统、社会结构。孔子幸运地承继了纪录得很好的古典书籍，如诗、尚书、易经、礼、乐、春秋。孔子用它们来做教育子弟学生的基本教科书。所以孔子自豪的说他‘述而不作，信而好古’。
苏格拉底就没有那么好运，他没有已被接受的参考书来开展他的哲学理念。我们可以说他并没有选择，只能成为作者。
孔子作为中国古代传统的一个述者，对他的古代著作阐述的接受，他并没有面对重大阻力。据说他有学生三千名，其中著名弟子七十二名。这些弟子对他很敬畏，以日月来比喻他的德行。他死后被葬于故土附近，不少弟子为他守墓三年，还植树来怀念他。据说他死后的第二年，鲁哀公将其故宅隔改建为庙，还为他奉祀。这是儒学漫长历史的开端。
作为新理念的哲学作者，苏格拉底的努力事实上引起疑虑，被看成是民主的反对者。公元前399年的一天，苏格拉底站在500名雅典陪审员前，被指控‘拒绝承认国家所承认的神’和‘败坏年轻人’。在聆听了苏格拉底和控方的陈词后，陪审员对他的罪名投票，而以280对220的票数判他有罪。他被判死刑。
很明显的，述者和作者的命运是不同的。
.
Confucius (551-479BC) and Socrates (469-399BC) are two of the most important thinkers in History. They have a huge impact on eastern and western culture respectively. People tend to say that Socrates is the Confucius of the western world and vice versa.
But we all know that these two thinkers are very different, and this is so mainly because they lived in very different social, cultural and political environments.
We have noted that Confucius lived during the Chinese Zhou dynasty which had already achieved a highly sophisticated political culture, educational system and social structure. Confucius had the good fortune of inheriting many well documented classical texts, such as the Books of Odes (Poetry), History, Changes, Rites, Music and The Annals of Spring and Autumn. Confucius took them as the basic textbooks to educate his disciples and students. Confucius had therefore proudly declared that he is ‘a transmitter and not a maker, believing in and loving the ancients’.
Socrates was not so lucky to have well accepted texts as his reference in developing his philosophical ideas. One can therefore say that he had no choice but to be a maker.
Confucius as a transmitter of ancient Chinese traditions did not face major resistances in getting his interpretation of ancient works accepted. It is said that he had three thousand students, of whom seventy-two were well-known disciples. His disciples respected or revered him and compared his virtue to the sun and moon. After his death, he was buried near his native town, and many of his disciples stayed there for three years mourning for him, where they planted trees in memory of him. It is believed that the second year after his death, the Duke of Lu took his house as the temple, where the duke made sacrifice to him. This was the beginning of the long history of the Confucianism.
As a maker of new ideas and philosophy, Socrates’ effort had actually raised suspicions about him and he was seen as a critic of democracy. On a day in 399 BC Socrates stood before a jury of 500 of his fellow Athenians accused of ‘refusing to recognize the gods recognized by the state’ and ‘of corrupting the youth.’ After hearing the arguments of both Socrates and his accusers, the jury was asked to vote on his guilt and he was found guilty by a vote of 280 to 220. He was sentenced to death.
The fates of a transmitter and maker are obviously different.
可是我们知道这两个思想家是不同的，主要因为它们生活在不同的社会、文化、政治环境里。
我们注意到孔子所生活的周朝已达到高度成熟的政治文化、交易系统、社会结构。孔子幸运地承继了纪录得很好的古典书籍，如诗、尚书、易经、礼、乐、春秋。孔子用它们来做教育子弟学生的基本教科书。所以孔子自豪的说他‘述而不作，信而好古’。
苏格拉底就没有那么好运，他没有已被接受的参考书来开展他的哲学理念。我们可以说他并没有选择，只能成为作者。
孔子作为中国古代传统的一个述者，对他的古代著作阐述的接受，他并没有面对重大阻力。据说他有学生三千名，其中著名弟子七十二名。这些弟子对他很敬畏，以日月来比喻他的德行。他死后被葬于故土附近，不少弟子为他守墓三年，还植树来怀念他。据说他死后的第二年，鲁哀公将其故宅隔改建为庙，还为他奉祀。这是儒学漫长历史的开端。
作为新理念的哲学作者，苏格拉底的努力事实上引起疑虑，被看成是民主的反对者。公元前399年的一天，苏格拉底站在500名雅典陪审员前，被指控‘拒绝承认国家所承认的神’和‘败坏年轻人’。在聆听了苏格拉底和控方的陈词后，陪审员对他的罪名投票，而以280对220的票数判他有罪。他被判死刑。
很明显的，述者和作者的命运是不同的。
.
Confucius (551-479BC) and Socrates (469-399BC) are two of the most important thinkers in History. They have a huge impact on eastern and western culture respectively. People tend to say that Socrates is the Confucius of the western world and vice versa.
But we all know that these two thinkers are very different, and this is so mainly because they lived in very different social, cultural and political environments.
We have noted that Confucius lived during the Chinese Zhou dynasty which had already achieved a highly sophisticated political culture, educational system and social structure. Confucius had the good fortune of inheriting many well documented classical texts, such as the Books of Odes (Poetry), History, Changes, Rites, Music and The Annals of Spring and Autumn. Confucius took them as the basic textbooks to educate his disciples and students. Confucius had therefore proudly declared that he is ‘a transmitter and not a maker, believing in and loving the ancients’.
Socrates was not so lucky to have well accepted texts as his reference in developing his philosophical ideas. One can therefore say that he had no choice but to be a maker.
Confucius as a transmitter of ancient Chinese traditions did not face major resistances in getting his interpretation of ancient works accepted. It is said that he had three thousand students, of whom seventy-two were well-known disciples. His disciples respected or revered him and compared his virtue to the sun and moon. After his death, he was buried near his native town, and many of his disciples stayed there for three years mourning for him, where they planted trees in memory of him. It is believed that the second year after his death, the Duke of Lu took his house as the temple, where the duke made sacrifice to him. This was the beginning of the long history of the Confucianism.
As a maker of new ideas and philosophy, Socrates’ effort had actually raised suspicions about him and he was seen as a critic of democracy. On a day in 399 BC Socrates stood before a jury of 500 of his fellow Athenians accused of ‘refusing to recognize the gods recognized by the state’ and ‘of corrupting the youth.’ After hearing the arguments of both Socrates and his accusers, the jury was asked to vote on his guilt and he was found guilty by a vote of 280 to 220. He was sentenced to death.
The fates of a transmitter and maker are obviously different.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment